Of these five thousand visas are reserved for people from Nicaragua and Central America. This visa lottery system specifically bars citizens of countries from where more than fifty thousand people have migrated to the US over the past five years. The US state department issues this list every year after computing the total number of people who have migrated to the US. This includes citizens of India, China, Canada, Pakistan, UK, Russia and others. Currently the diversity lottery for 2007 is open until September 2007. Eligible citizens whose application has been short-listed and who have received a confirmation to this effect must immediately apply for the visa within the fiscal year 2007. A visa confirmation lapses if not used and you cannot carry it forward to the next year.

The US state department holds a computerized lottery and selects about a hundred and ten thousand applicants as not all those who are selected will apply for the visa. If you get a visa through the diversity lottery you can live and work in the US permanently along with your spouse and unmarried children below the age of twenty-one. Once fifty-five thousand visas are issued, the diversity lottery program for that year closes. The US government charges no fees for this visa, so beware of fraudulent intermediaries and websites who offer assistance and expertise in processing your application.

You need to submit the application online along with digital photographs of yourself and your dependents. Visit any of the US state government websites for proper instructions and specific requirements of the digital photographs. If your application does not conform to the regulations, it will be rejected. Anybody can submit your application, but two applications for a person will lead to a cancellation of this application. However, you and your spouse can apply separately and you can accompany the spouse whose application is accepted.

Let us understand the eligibility requirements for the diversity visa. You must first confirm from the website if you belong to a country whose citizens are eligible to apply for this visa program. This means you must be born in that country. If ineligible then your spouse must belong to an eligible country. In addition, you can enter the US with your spouse if both apply for the visa simultaneously. Secondly, if neither of your parents is a resident of the country of your birth, you can claim eligibility under the country of either of your parents birth provided the country is in the eligible list. The second eligibility criterion is that you must be at least a high school graduate or have a work experience of two years along with a training of two years. You can consult the department of labors website to get a list of the eligible vocations.

The application must be submitted online at the specified US government website and no paper entries are permitted. You must fill in the application online as it can accept network disruptions of up to an hour. If the form is not submitted within an hour then the application is not accepted and you apply afresh. For each years visa program, you must fill in and submit the form within the specified dates of October and December. If you are registered, your confirmation is displayed on the website and you can print the confirmation for future use during the visa interview. Along with the application you must submit separate individual photographs in the specified format of yourself, your spouse and dependent unmarried children below the age of twenty-one. You must include all children including adopted children and stepchildren even if they do not stay with you, except children whoa re already US citizens. These children may or may not accompany you to the US but you must provide all information about them.

The photograph must be digital or a digital image of a scanned photo. It must be color or grayscale and monochrome photos are not acceptable. The photo must confirm to the JPEG format and measure two-inch by two-inch in size. It must be not more then 62 KB in size and must have a specified resolution of 320 by 240 pixels. The focus of the photo must be on the head against a neutral background. The person must not wear any cap on the head that covers his face. He must face the camera directly and not wear accessories that distract from the face or cover the face partially. The head must not be tilted at any angle and cover more than fifty percent of the photograph. A scanned photo must also meet the above specifications.

You must fill the form in the specified format as it is displayed on the website. Fill in your full name, including first, middle and family name. Give your date of birth and gender along with the city of birth. Indicate your country of birth that makes you eligible for this visa. Include your photo as per the above specifications. Give your full mailing address and an email address and phone number if possible. Indicate the country of eligibility if separate from your country of birth. Indicate your marital status and the number of unmarried children under the age of twenty-one. Give full information and photos about your spouse and each child. All qualified candidates receive a notification to that effect within five to seven months of application and must apply within the same fiscal year. Those who receive no intimation must assume their application has been rejected. For other questions and clarifications, you can visit the US government websites to guide you through the diversity lottery visa program. Therefore read all the instructions and specifications carefully before submitting your application form so that your chances of acceptance are hundred percent.