REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTRY
1. To enter the DV program, you must be a native of one of the listed countries.
Native of a qualifying country: In most cases, this means the country in which you were born. However, there are two other ways you may be able to qualify. First, if you were born in a country whose natives are ineligible but your spouse was born in a country whose natives are eligible, you can claim your spouse’s country of birth—provided that both you and your spouse are on the selected entry, are issued visas, and enter the United States simultaneously. Second, if you were born in a country whose natives are ineligible, but neither of your parents was born there or resided there at the time of your birth, you may claim nativity in one of your parents’ countries of birth if it is a country whose natives qualify for the DV-2013 program.
2. To enter the DV program, you must meet either the education or work experience requirement of the DV program: You must have either a high school education or its equivalent, defined as successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education; OR two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience to perform. The U.S. Department of Labor’s O*Net OnLine database will be used to determine qualifying work experience.
If you cannot meet either of these requirements, you should NOT submit an entry to the DV program.
PROCEDURES FOR SUBMITTING AN ENTRY TO DV-2013
3. The Department of State will only accept completed E-DV entry forms submitted electronically at www.dvlottery.state.gov during the registration period between noon, EDT (GMT-4), Tuesday, October 4, 2011, and noon, EDT (GMT-4), Saturday, November 5, 2011.
(a) All entries by an individual will be disqualified if more than ONE entry for that individual is received, regardless of who submitted the entry. You may prepare and submit your own entry or have someone submit the entry for you. There are NO COSTS or FEES to register for the DV Program.
(b) A successfully registered entry will result in a confirmation screen containing your name and a unique confirmation number. You must print this confirmation screen for your records using the print function of your web browser and ensure that you retain your confirmation number. Starting May 1, 2012, you will be able to check the status of your DV-2013 entry by returning to www.dvlottery.state.gov Entrant Status Check and entering your unique confirmation number and personal information. Entrant Status Check will be the sole means of informing you of your selection for DV-2013, providing instructions to you on how to proceed with your application, and notifying you of your appointment for your immigrant visa interview. Therefore, it is essential you retain your confirmation number. The U.S. Department of State is unable to provide your entry confirmation number if it is lost.
(c) Paper entries are no longer accepted. The sole method for entry to the 2013 Diversity Visa Program is through this electronic process.
4. It is very important that you submit all required photographs. Your entry will be disqualified if you do not submit all the required photographs. Recent photographs of the following people must be submitted electronically with the E-DV entry form:
(a) You
(b) Your spouse
(c) Each unmarried child under 21 years of age at the time of your electronic entry, including all natural children as well as all legally adopted children and stepchildren, even if a child no longer resides with you or you do not intend for a child to immigrate under the DV program.
Failure to submit the required photographs for your spouse and each child listed will result in an incomplete entry to the E-DV system. The entry will not be accepted and must be resubmitted.
