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11. WHAT FAMILY MEMBERS MUST I INCLUDE ON MY E-DV ENTRY?
On your entry you must list your spouse, that is husband or wife, and all unmarried children under 21 years of age, with the exception of children who are already U.S. citizens or Legal Permanent Residents. You must list your spouse even if you are currently separated from him/her, unless you are legally separated (i.e. there is a written agreement recognized by a court or a court order). If you are legally separated or divorced, you do not need to list your former spouse. You must list ALL your children who are unmarried and under 21 years of age, whether they are your biological children, your spouse’s children, or children you have formally adopted in accordance with the laws of your country, unless such child is already a U.S. citizen or Legal Permanent Resident. List all children under 21 years of age even if they no longer reside with you or you do not intend for them to immigrate under the DV program.
The fact that you have listed family members on your entry does not mean that they later must travel with you. They may choose to remain behind. However, if you include an eligible dependent on your visa application forms that you failed to include on your original entry, your case will be disqualified. This only applies to those who were family members at the time the original application was submitted, not those acquired at a later date. Your spouse may still submit a separate entry, even though he or she is listed on your entry, as long as both entries include details on all dependents in your family. See question #10 above.
12. MUST EACH INDIVIDUAL SUBMIT HIS/HER OWN ENTRY, OR MAY SOMEONE ACT ON BEHALF OF ANOTHER PERSON?
People may prepare and submit their own entries, or have someone submit the entry for them. Regardless of whether an entry is submitted by the individual directly, or assistance is provided by an attorney, friend, relative, etc., only one entry may be submitted in the name of each person and the entrant remains responsible for insuring that information in the entry is correct and complete. If the entry is selected, the notification letter will be sent only to the mailing address provided on the entry.
13. WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR EDUCATION OR WORK EXPERIENCE?
The law and regulations require that every entrant must have at least a high school education or its equivalent or, within the past five years, have two years of work experience in an occupation requiring at least two years training or experience. A "high school education or equivalent" is defined as successful completion of a twelve-year course of elementary and secondary education in the United States or successful completion in another country of a formal course of elementary and secondary education comparable to a high school education in the United States. Documentary proof of education or work experience must be presented to the consular officer at the time of the visa interview. To determine eligibility based on work experience, definitions from the Department of Labor’s O*Net OnLine database will be used.
What Occupations qualify for the Diversity Visa Program? The Department of Labor (DOL) O*Net Online Database database groups job experience into five "job zones." While many occupations are listed on the DOL Website, only certain specified occupations qualify for the Diversity Visa Program. To qualify for a Diversity Visa on the basis of your work experience, you must, within the past five years, have two years of experience in an occupation that is designated as Job Zone 4 or 5, classified in a Specific Vocational Preparation (SVP) range of 7.0 or higher. How Do I Find the Qualifying Occupations on the Department of Labor Website? Qualifying DV Occupations are shown on the Department of Labor O*Net Online Database. Follow these steps to find out if your occupation qualifies: Select "Find Occupations" and then select a specific "Job Family". For example, select Architecture and Engineering and click "GO". Then click on the link for the specific Occupation. Following the same example, click Aerospace Engineers. After selecting a specific Occupation link, select the tab "Job Zone" to find out the designated Job Zone number and Specific Vocational Preparation (SVP) rating range.
14. HOW WILL SUCCESSFUL ENTRANTS BE SELECTED?
At the Kentucky Consular Center, all entries received from each region will be individually numbered. After the end of the registration period, a computer will randomly select entries from among all the entries received for each geographic region. Within each region, the first entry randomly selected will be the first case registered, the second entry selected the second registration, etc. All entries received during the registration period will have an equal chance of being selected within each region. When an entry has been selected, the entrant will be sent a notification letter by the Kentucky Consular Center, which will provide visa application instructions. The Kentucky Consular Center will continue to process the case until those selected to be visa applicants are instructed to appear for visa interviews at a U.S. consular office, or until those qualifying to change status in the United States apply at a domestic USCIS office.
Important Note: Notifications to those selected in the random lottery are not sent by email. Should you receive an email notification about your E-DV selection, be aware that the message is not legitimate.
15. MAY SELECTEES ADJUST THEIR STATUS WITH USCIS?
Yes, provided they are otherwise eligible to adjust status under the terms of Section 245 of the INA, selected individuals who are physically present in the United States may apply to the USCIS for adjustment of status to permanent resident. Applicants must ensure that USCIS can complete action on their cases, including processing of any overseas derivatives, before September 30, 2010, since on that date registrations for the DV-2010 program expire. No visa numbers for the DV-2010 program will be available after midnight EST on September 30, 2010 under any circumstances.
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