Diversity Visa, sometimes also known as the Lottery Visa or Green Card Lottery, is a permanent residence visa that allows its holders to move to and live in the United States indefinitely like any other permanent residents or green card holders.
The two main requirements for the Diversity Visa are:
- Luck 🍀
- Citizenship
The Diversity Visa is offered to citizens of countries with low immigration rates to the U.S.
For examples, citizens of Canada 🇨🇦, Brazil 🇧🇷, Mexico 🇲🇽, South Korea 🇰🇷, Phillipines 🇵🇭, and more than 10 other countries cannot apply for this visa because historically, there has been a high level of immigration from these countries.
- For a list of citizenships that are not eligible to apply, you can check them out here (Source: the US Department of State).
Citizens of all other countries would be eligible to apply.
Although luck is a big factor in getting this visa, the green card is not handed to just about anyone.
There are still other requirements, such as:
- The completion of high school education or equivalent at the minimum, and
- Having at least two years of work experience in an eligible occupation
So to obtain this visa, aside from luck, you have to leverage your citizenship and education together with your skills and work experience.
More About This Visa
Unlike other types of immigration streams, the US Diversity Visa does not require applicants to prove that they can speak English, but they do need to provide proof of finances and pass a police background check as well.
The Green Card Lottery is one of the simplest ways to obtain permanent residency, because of its relatively easier requirements and there is no need to become a temporary resident first. However, it is largely dependent on luck, and there is a limited quota for this visa every year (only around 50,000–55,000 annually).
