The U.S. Department of State has issued instructions (pdf) on how to apply for the 2011 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV-2011). This Congressionally mandated program makes available 50,000 diversity visas (DV) annually, drawn from random selection among all entries, to persons from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States and who meet strict eligibility requirements.

To enter the lottery, applicants must have:

• successfully completed a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education; or
• completed two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience to perform. The U.S. Department of Labor’s O*Net online database will be used to determine qualifying work experience.

Applications can be filed online only. (Required application information can be found in the above-referenced instructions.)

Starting July 1, 2010, applicants will be able to check their status online. Selected applicants will be notified, via mail, of their successful application. These individuals will receive further information on the immigration process and must submit additional materials. These materials must be submitted and processed, and a visa must be issued, by September 30, 2011. If the process is not fully completed by that date, no visa will issue.

NOTE: For DV-2011, natives of the following countries are not eligible to apply because the countries sent a total of more than 50,000 immigrants to the United States in the previous five years: Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Columbia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan are eligible.