Overview
In general, a person who wishes to immigrate to the United States must have a petition approved by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services [USCIS] before applying for an immigrant visa. The petition is filed either by a qualified relative or a potential employer at a USCIS office in the United States. Specific information about filing immigrant petitions is available on the USCIS website. An individual with an approved petition and a priority date that is current for processing [when applicable] is eligible to apply for an immigrant visa or K nonimmigrant visa.
Visa Lottery Notice
Important Notice Regarding the 2012 Diversity Visa Program
The results of the selection process for the 2012 Diversity Visa [DV-2012] program have been voided. Results previously available via the Entry Status Check [ESC] function on the Department of State website, dvlottery.state.gov, were posted in error and are now invalid. The results were not valid because of a computer error; they did not represent a fair, random selection of entrants, as required by U.S. law.
This means that we have rescinded all notices informing entrants that they had been selected for further processing in DV-2012; if you received such a notice via ESC on dvlottery.state.gov, it is no longer valid.
A new random selection process will be conducted based on the original entries for the DV-2012 program. If you submitted a qualified entry from October 5, 2010, to November 3, 2010, you do not need to reapply. Your entry will be included in the new random selection. Your confirmation number, which is required to determine the status of your entry, remains the same. We are not accepting new entries for the DV-2012 program.
We expect the results of the new random selection process to be available by July 15, 2011, via the ESC function on dvlottery.state.gov.
We regret any inconvenience this might have caused.
For further information and future updates on the 2012 DV program, please see:
//www.dvlottery.state.gov/
//travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/diversity-visa-program-entry.html
Questions and Answers
Q: How was this error discovered?
- The results showed a pattern that was inconsistent with the statistical outcome expected from a random selection; more than 98 percent of the selectees had registered for the DV program on the first two days of the 30-day registration period.
Q: Why is it necessary to invalidate the results and run a new selection?
- The Immigration and Nationality Act requires that Diversity Immigrant Visas be made available on a strictly random basis. Since the computer programming error resulted in an outcome that was not strictly random, the outcome does not meet the requirements of the law. Relying on the original results also would have meant unfairly disadvantaging many DV entrants.
- The Department has long made the DV random selection with the aid of computer software. For the 2012 program, a new computer program was used which failed to run a random process. This is the first problem of this sort to occur in the 15 years of conducting a computer-aided drawing for the DV program.
Q: What about people who checked the website last week and thought they had won? Aren't you taking visas away from them?
- Selection in the DV process does not guarantee anyone a visa. It provides selectees only with an opportunity to apply for a visa.
- We regret that incorrect results were posted on our DV Entry Status Check webpage before this problem was discovered and resolved. Any information that appeared on the Entry Status Check website between May 1 and May 6, 2011, is void and invalid.
- We understand that some people who viewed the confirmation website and thought they had been selected are disappointed, and we deeply regret any inconvenience or disappointment that this error caused.
- Everyone who submitted a valid DV entry for the 2012 selection will have an equal chance to be selected when the new, corrected random process is run.
Q: Do you believe the software was intentionally corrupted or hacked?
- No. This appears to be solely a computer programming error. We have no evidence that this resulted from any intentional act. We also have no evidence that any outside party accessed any data related to the DV program.
Q: Did you invalidate the results because too many winners came from a particular country?
- No. The distribution of results by country fell within a normal statistical range. The distribution of selectees by date of registration, however, showed that the program gave unequal weight to the date of registration. More than 98 percent of the selectees had registered on the first two days of the registration period.
Furthermore, the law that established the DV program stipulates that applicants from a single country cannot be issued more than seven percent of the available visas in any one fiscal year.
Q: Will you reopen the entry period?
- No. We will rerun the computer selection with the qualified DV entries received during the official entry period [October 5, 2010 to November 3, 2010]. It is not necessary to resubmit entries. DV confirmation numbers provided to check results on our Entry Status Check webpage are still valid.
Q: When will the new selection be run? When will correct results be available on your website?
- We expect new results to be available on the Entry Status Check webpage on or about July 15, 2011.
Q: How much did this error cost the U.S. government?
- Because the problem was corrected before any DV applications were processed, the financial impact is minimal.
Petitions in Singapore
The Immigrant Unit in Singapore accepts I-130 petitions for immediate relative immigrant classification from American citizens who are resident in Singapore. To demonstrate residency, the American citizen petitioner must be able to show permission to reside in Singapore [e.g. Singapore Permanent Resident status, an Employment Pass, Dependent's Pass, or other permanent status] and must have been resident in Singapore for at least six months before filing the petition. American citizens who are in Singapore on temporary status, such as students or tourists, do not meet the residency standard and must file their petitions directly with the domestic USCIS office having jurisdiction over the American citizen's place of residence. For further information please click here.
Medical Requirements
All applicants must undergo a medical exam by an Embassy-approved Panel Physician. Information about the medical exam can be found here. You will receive instructions about how to schedule an appointment for your medical exam from NVC or the Embassy. Do not try to make an appointment before receiving these instructions.
Embassy Appointment
If you have an interview date, you must appear at the Embassy on the date of your appointment. You should arrive at the Embassy fifteen minutes before your appointment. Please read about security restrictions at the Embassy that describe what you can and cannot bring with you to your interview. You should bring your appointment letter and the documents required for your visa class.
Visa Delivery
All immigrant visa applicants must arrange for Aramex to deliver their newly-issued visa. This courier service is provided for no additional fee. You must choose the location where you wish to have your visa delivered prior to scheduling your interview. You can choose your delivery location here. Either you or your representative must have your Immigrant Case Number [as shown in the Embassy notification letter] available if calling the call center to register your visa delivery preference.