HORITSU.COM :: The US Immigration Laws

On May 24, 1999 the US Department of State released the results of the "DV-2000" immigrant visa lottery program, which will award 50,000 green cards beginning October 1, 1999. 110,000 semi-finalists were notified from early April through late May. Only the first 50,000 of the semifinalists will receive green cards between October 1, 1999 and September 30, 2000.

The semi-finalists for the DV-2000 program were selected at random from the more than 8 million qualified entries received during the one-month registration period which ran from noon on October 1, 1998 through noon on October 31, 1998. Over 2.5 million applications received were disqualified for failing to properly follow directions.

For your information, Bangladesh was the biggest winner this year with 9,175 semi-finalists. Japan had 367 semi-finalists.

The visas are apportioned among 6 geographic regions with a maximum of 3,500 visas available to persons born in any single country. During the visa interview, the principal winner must provide proof of a high school education or its equivalent, or minimum work experience.

Those selected as semi-finalists need to act on their immigrant visa applications quickly. Once the total 50,000 visas have been used, the program for year 2000 will end. Similarly, spouses and children accompanying the DV-2000 principal winner must obtain their visas before numbers run out too. Although it is possible for some people to apply for green card interviews in the United States, I generally recommend that the interviews for lottery winners be scheduled in Tokyo or Naha, Japan since they tend to be processed faster than Los Angeles INS.

The dates for the mail-in period for the DV-2001 lottery are scheduled from noon on October 4, 1999 until noon on November 3, 1999. Instructions on entering the DV-2001 program will be publicized by the US Department of State beginning August 2, 1999. My office will provide a DV-2001 lottery registration service, which also includes notification of the mail-in period for the next lottery (DV-2002), beginning in early August.