Why Hasn't the Green Card Lottery Been Announced Yet? The State Department's Response
The US Diversity Visa Lottery (DV), for which registration usually opens in the first week of October, has been postponed until the 2027 program. The publication explains why this happened and when the lottery is planned to be activated. NepYork.
The US State Department has not yet announced official registration dates, prompting speculation about possible reasons for the delay. These include the need for technical updates following the introduction of the new $1 registration fee and the government shutdown.
A State Department spokesperson did not confirm the reason for the delay, but said that news about the DV-2027 program would be released soon.
"The Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) 2027 program will be announced soon. The announcement will be posted on the website travel.state.gov“,” the project representative clarified.
On the subject: The State Department is introducing a fee for participation in the green card lottery.
The spokesperson recalled that the final rule establishing a $1 registration fee for participation in the DV lottery was published in the Federal Register on September 16, 2025, and became effective that same day.
The Federal Register is the official U.S. government journal that publishes draft and final federal rules and regulations, notices of proposed legislative changes, executive orders, orders, and other documents. All federal agencies are required to publish draft new rules in the Federal Register so the public can review them and comment—this is called the public comment period. After the public comment period, the final version of the rule is published, along with its effective date. - Note.)
Public notice of this fee was given on September 15, 2025.
"The new registration fee will allow for a more equitable distribution of the costs of conducting a random selection among participants, and will also help reduce the number of speculative registrations by individuals seeking to exploit dubious potential participants," the representative explained.
This fee must be collected electronically when applying for the lottery. The State Department estimates it will generate approximately $25 million in revenue.
A notice published in the Federal Register states that the change is intended to "more fairly place the financial burden on individuals seeking to enter the DV lottery, rather than shifting the cost to all applicants."
Previously, the lottery costs were included in the $330 Diversity Visa application fee, which was paid only by applicants who were selected and received a visa.
Although the lottery costs are now excluded from the DV visa fee, the total amount ($330) charged to successful applicants will not be reduced for now. The government has stated that it plans to review and adjust this fee in future updates to the calculation model.
The exact start date for accepting applications for the DV-2027 program has not yet been set. The State Department is expected to soon publish detailed information on its website and in the Federal Register, including application deadlines, eligibility criteria, and a list of eligible countries.
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Additionally, the Trump administration proposed a new rule requiring a passport for all DV lottery participants. Due to the time required to approve this rule, the requirement will not be enacted this year. The draft was published in the Federal Register on August 5 of this year, and the public comment period closed on September 19, 2025.
The administration is currently working on introducing a legally binding passport requirement. The Biden administration also planned to legislate a similar requirement, but never followed through.
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