Green Card Lottery Results

2012 DV Winner

The 2012 DV lottery is conducted under the terms of section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The program is giving out 50,000 permanent resident visas to people from countries with low immigration rates to the United States. Just over 100,000 of the almost 15 million qualified applicants have been registered and notified and can now apply for their immigration visa, the first step on the road to become a green card holder. The reason why the Department of State (DOS) selects twice as many people as visas is because it is likely many people who have registered will be ineligible or won't be able to complete the visa application process. So having 100,000 people registered will assure that all DV 2012 numbers will be used during the fiscal year from October 1st, 2011 through September 30th, 2012.
The 100,000 applicants chosen were selected randomly from the millions of applications done online between October 5, 2010 and November 3, 2010. The visas are divided between six geographic regions around the world. Since this U.S. Government Program aims to diversify the American population by giving an immigration opportunity to under-represented ethnic groups and populations, no single country can receive more than seven percent of the available immigrant visas available in a single fiscal year. Those applicants who have been selected in the annual DV Lottery Program need to act on their immigrant visa applications as soon as possible, following all instructions in the notification letter they received and fully completing the information requested. This is a good opportunity for potential immigrants to obtain the status as a permanent legal resident of the USA. Attaining permanent residency or a Green Card gives a person the legal right to Live, Work and Study permanently in the United States and to enter and leave the country freely. You may work in any government, public and private job that is available. A Permanent Residence Visa, or Green Card is generally good for life. Green Card holders also receive health, education, retirement, taxation, social security and other benefits. Moreover, obtaining a Green Card will not affect your present citizenship.

The Map below Shows DV Eligible countries based on the six geographic locations:

DV Winners