• What is the Diversity Visa Lottery Program?
• Who is Eligible to Enter the Diversity Visa Lottery?
• How Do I Apply?
• How Can I Find Out More Information?
• How Much Does the Lottery Cost?
• What are the procedures if I am notified by mail that I was selected?
• What documents are necessary for the visa interview?

What is the Diversity Visa Lottery Program?
Each year, 50,000 immigrant visas are made available through a lottery to people who come from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. The program is not available to people who come from countries that have sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the United States in the past five years. The State Department's National Visa Center holds the lottery every year through a computer-generated random lottery drawing of the qualified entries. Anyone who is selected under this lottery will be given the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. If permanent residence is granted, then the individual will be authorized to live and work permanently in the United States. Winners will also be allowed to bring your spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21 to the United States.

Who is Eligible to Enter the Diversity Visa Lottery?

• You or your spouse must be a native of a country that is eligible to participate in the Diversity Visa Lottery. You may also be eligible to apply if your parent was born in a country that is eligible to participate. Bolivia usually qualifies as a country eligible for the Diversity Visa Lottery Program. However, the State Department will publish the names of countries that are eligible to participate before each year's lottery. Visit the following website: http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants_types_diversity.html for more information.
• You must have a high school diploma or the equivalent, defined in the United States as successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education; OR you must have two years of work experience within the last five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform.

How Do I Apply?
Before each year's lottery drawing, the Department of State will publish explicit instructions on how to apply in press releases, the Federal Register and their websites: http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants_types_diversity.html and http://www.dvlottery.state.gov. Please follow all directions exactly. Millions of applicants are rejected each year for failure to follow the directions. Instructions are usually posted in August, and the registration period is usually held between November and January each year. Please note that the Diversity Visa Lottery Program for 2006 has ended.

How Can I Find Out More Information?
Along with visiting the websites listed above, you may also call the State Department's Visa Lottery Information Center at 1-900-884-8840 for more information. Please note: There is a charge for each call.

How Much Does the Lottery Cost?
There is no fee for entering the diversity visa lottery. If you win, you must pay a fee for an immigrant visa and a separate visa lottery surcharge.

How Can I Find Out If I Won?
Only the winners will be notified by mail at the addresses listed on their applications. Winners will be sent instructions and information on fees. Being selected as a winner in the diversity visa lottery does not automatically guarantee that you will be issued a visa, even if you are qualified. The number of entries selected is greater than the number of immigrant visas available, because not everyone selected will be qualified for the visa or will choose to complete the processing. Once all 50,000 visas have been issued, the diversity visa program for the year will end.

What are the procedures if I am notified by mail that I was selected?
If you are selected you have the right to apply for an immigrant visa (at the Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy Bolivia). Winners will be notified by mail by the Kentucky Consular Center (KCC), which handles the administrative processing for all DV Immigrant Visa Application. The KCC sends the winners instructions and informational forms to fill out and return to the KCC. Once the KCC receives all the completed forms necessary to qualify visa applicants and family members for a DV Immigrant Visa interview, they will schedule an appointment for the visa interview at 1:30 pm at the U.S. Embassy in La Paz. The visa interview the KCC schedules is usually on a Wednesday.

What documents are necessary for the visa interview?
The instructional packet will list specific documents you need to bring to the interview. The following are general requirements only to bring to the visa interview:

1. Two FORWARD FACING color photographs 5cm. x 5cm. (2in.x 2in.) taken within the last six months. The photographs should be non-glossy, have a white background, and be of good quality. Only the face should be visible. Note: The Consular Section is no longer requiring 3/4 profile photographs. Photos should now be FORWARD FACING. For more detailed information visit: http://travel.state.gov/passport/pptphotos/index.html
2. Passport (valid for a minimum of six months).
3. Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration Form DS-230 (part I and II), original.
4. Medical forms (original).
5. US$380 per person the cost of a resident or immigrant visa is, which can be paid in cash the day of the interview
6. US$ 375 per person surcharge
7. Birth Certificate (original and photocopy).
8. Marriage Certificate (original and photocopy), if applicable.
9. Divorce or death certificates (original and photocopy), if applicable.
10. Police Certificate (police certificates are required from every visa applicant aged 16 years or older.
    
    TRANSLATIONS: All documents not in English or Spanish must be accompanied by a certified English translation.

A consular officer will then conduct an interview with the visa applicant only, to determine whether he/she is eligible for the visa. If all documents are in order and the applicant is found eligible, an immigrant visa will be issued. The applicant’s passport will remain with the Consular Section in order to place the visa in his/her passport. The applicant will usually be able to pick up his/her passport with the visa at Window 5 at 4:30pm the same day of the interview. After receiving the immigrant visa, the alien will have 6 months to travel to the U.S., at which time he or she will present his/her passport with the visa to the immigration officer at the port of entry into the U.S. Once the alien is admitted, the immigration officer will place a stamp in the alien’s, which indicates that he/she is now a legal permanent resident of the United States. The Permanent Resident Card Form I-551 (formerly know as “Green Card”) will be mailed to the resident alien’s address in the U.S. (The resident alien’s Social Security card will also be mailed to his/her address in the U.S.). While the resident alien is waiting to receive by mail his/her Permanent Resident Card Form I-551 (“Green Card”), he/she may use the stamp in his/her passport as proof of legal permanent residency in the U.S.

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If you have a question that is not covered in the Information on our webpage, please contact us at consularlapaz@state.gov.