Diversity
It is Lottery time, once again. Not the game – but the real Visa Lottery, in which 50,000 green cards are given out by the U.S. government.
This program began in 1990, and it was not really intended to promote racial or cultural diversity, as the name implies. The goal of Congress was to make it easier for Irish and Italian immigrants to come to the U.S. legally. Back then, the number of European immigrants had fallen, the system needed fixed and Congress created this program. Countries such as Mexico, the Philippines and China are NOT eligible – the list of eligible countries changes each year.
Now, the program actually does promote more diversity, with a significant portion of Lottery visas in 2016/2017 going to residents of African countries.
Applications can be accepted until noon November 6th, and winners are randomly selected from millions of qualified entries. Applicants must have a high school education and 2 years of experience in specific occupations.
President Trump vowed to end the Visa Lottery program, and move to a more merit-based immigration system, but this Lottery program actually is a merit-based system with stringent education and experience requirements.
The U.S. allows about a million immigrants in each year, so ending the lottery system that awards 50,000 visas each year will not change much.
If you want more information on the DV program, go to www.state.gov and look for ‘Diversity Visa’ under the Quick Links section.
