Green Card Lottery Time Again! 10/2/2009-11/30/2009

Once again, the US Government will offer the opportunity to apply for permanent residence in the US (a "green card") to a randomly selected group of 55,000 people from many countries all over the world. Unfortunately, the following countries are not eligible to apply because these countries sent a total of more than 50,000 immigrants to the United States in the previous five years:
BRAZIL
CANADA
CHINA (mainland-born)
COLOMBIA
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
ECUADOR
EL SALVADOR
GUATEMALA
HAITI
INDIA
JAMAICA
MEXICO
PAKISTAN
PERU
PHILIPPINES
POLAND
SOUTH KOREA
UNITED KINGDOM (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories
VIETNAM

Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan are eligible.

The process to apply is easy and if you are eligible to apply, there is never any harm in trying! Entries for the DV-2011 DV lottery must be submitted electronically between noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) (GMT-4), Friday, October 2, 2009, and noon, Eastern Standard Time (EST) (GMT-5), Monday, November 30, 2009. Applicants may access the electronic DV Entry Form (E-DV) at the State Department Website during the registration period. Paper entries will not be accepted. Don't wait until the last minute! Heavy demand may result in website delays and if you wait too long, your entry may not get processed. No entries will be accepted after noon, EST, on November 30, 2009.

The 55,000 lucky winners will be picked and notified and will need to make an application for permanent residence between 10/1/2010 and 9/30/2011. At the time you are selected, you must prove that you have a minimum high school education; you have reason to believe you can be employed in the US; and you are not subject to the 212e requirement as a former or current J-1 visa holder.

If selected, I am always happy to help individuals compile the necessary forms and documents to apply for permanent residence. Good luck to all the applicants!