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Photo for Green Card Lottery

In submitting photos to the DV Lottery the following is recommended:

• The applicant either needs to take a new digital image or scan an old picture.
• Photographs submitted must be recent, taken within the last six months.
• Digital enhancement, retouching, or any other form of photo alteration is not acceptable.
• Further, the original aspect ratio of the picture must be preserved with no image stretching allowed.

The person�s photo should contain the following:

• The complete face, neck, and shoulders with a frontal view; an expression without smile and eyes both open and facing the camera; vertically-oriented posture.

The person�s photo should NOT contain the following:

• Any parts of the body below the person�s shoulders; other objects; other people.

The subject�s position must be directly facing the camera. His or her head cannot be tilted up, down, or off to the side. The head�s height, which goes from the top of the head including the hair to the bottom of the chin, must be between 50% and 68% of the image�s total height. The eye, height, which covers eye level down to the bottom of the photo, should fall between 56% and 69% of the photo�s total height.

Photo background must be a plain, light-colored backdrop with no shadows present anywhere in the picture. The person�s face must be clear and all important facial features defined. There should be no dot patterns or pixels visible to the viewer.

No extras, such as sunglasses, that conceal any part of the face are permitted. However, eyeglasses are allowed, just as long as they aren�t tinted or provide any kind of glare. A way to prevent glare is to slightly tilt the head without affecting the head position, in general. Hats are only allowed if they are worn for religious reasons and do not conceal the face in any way. No other hat exceptions, including military and tribal affiliations.

The photo�s overall color must reflect the subject�s natural skin tone. Photo brightness and contrast must all accurately represent the person. Lighting must be set so as not to over-expose or under-expose the picture.

Green Card Lottery Photo Examples:

Below are good and bad examples of pictures. In order for the uploaded picture to be acceptable, it is important to read each note as indicated under each photo below.

Poorly Focused	Properly Focused
Improper Color	Natural Color

Background Not Plain	Plain Background
Photo Too Dark	Correct Brightness

Wearing A Hat	No Additional Hat or Sunglasses
Sun Glasses	No Sun Glasses

Understanding all the green card lottery photo requirements will help you in being successful with entering the green card lottery.