Picking up Lottery Visas Outside the US Beginning in or about April of this year, the National Visa Center notified about 100,000 individuals who had been selected at random from eligible applicant pool of millions as winners of the DV-2000 Diversity Lottery. The winners started submitting their visa application to the Immigration and Naturalization Service beginning October 1,1999. Applicants who do not receive their visas or approval of their visas by the cut off date of September 30, 2000, will not be granted visas from the DV- Diversity Lottery Program. Therefore applicants are strongly advised to start acting on their lottery immigration applications as soon as possible. Selected applicants who legally reside in the United States may be able to adjust their status in the United States. But selected applicants who illegally reside in the United States (either because their visas have expired or for any other reason) will not be able to adjust their status in the United States.	However, a selected applicant who resides illegally in the United States and leaves the United States to pick up his/her lottery visa, will likely be barred from the United States because of the New Immigration Law which took effort on January 14,1998. If an applicant has resided illegally in the United States after April 1, 1997, he/she will be barred from re-entering the United States for a period of about, 3 years (if he/she resided illegally for 180 days or more but less than 1 year) or, 10 years (if he/she resided illegally for more than a year.) The Immigration and Naturalization Service counts the 3-year or 10- year period from the date of the applicant's departure from the United States. Selected applicants who have any doubts about the legality of their status in the United States are advised to contact the Immigration and Naturalization Service with an Immigration Attorney.

Picking up Lottery Visas Outside the US

Beginning in or about April of this year, the National Visa Center notified about 100,000 individuals who had been selected at random from eligible applicant pool of millions as winners of the DV-2000 Diversity Lottery. The winners started submitting their visa application to the Immigration and Naturalization Service beginning October 1,1999. Applicants who do not receive their visas or approval of their visas by the cut off date of September 30, 2000, will not be granted visas from the DV- Diversity Lottery Program. Therefore applicants are strongly advised to start acting on their lottery immigration applications as soon as possible.

Selected applicants who legally reside in the United States may be able to adjust their status in the United States. But selected applicants who illegally reside in the United States (either because their visas have expired or for any other reason) will not be able to adjust their status in the United States.

However, a selected applicant who resides illegally in the United States and leaves the United States to pick up his/her lottery visa, will likely be barred from the United States because of the New Immigration Law which took effort on January 14,1998.

If an applicant has resided illegally in the United States after April 1, 1997, he/she will be barred from re-entering the United States for a period of about, 3 years (if he/she resided illegally for 180 days or more but less than 1 year) or, 10 years (if he/she resided illegally for more than a year.) The Immigration and Naturalization Service counts the 3-year or 10- year period from the date of the applicant's departure from the United States.

Selected applicants who have any doubts about the legality of their status in the United States are advised to contact the Immigration and Naturalization Service with an Immigration Attorney.