US Green Card Lottery 2025: How to Check, Who's Eligible, and Application Process

Winners of the Green Card Lottery, which gives out 55,000 cards, will be announced on May 12 at 12 pm (EDT). This lottery, run by the US Department of State, randomly picks people from countries with low immigration rates to the US.

To check the status of your application for the US Diversity Visa, known as DV-2025, you can go to the official website and enter your confirmation details. The process for DV-2025 starts on May 4 at noon (EDT), and applicants should keep their confirmation number safe until September 30, 2025.

For the DV-2025 program, applicants must meet two requirements: They must be born in a country eligible for the program, and they must have either a high school degree or two years of work experience in the past five years in a job that needs at least two years of training.

To apply for a US Green Card through the Diversity Immigrant Visa 2025 Program, you need to fill out Form I-485, according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Here are the documents you'll need:

Two passport-style photos

Copy of birth certificate

Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record

Copy of passport page with nonimmigrant visa (if applicable)

Copy of passport page with admission (entry) or parole stamp (if applicable)

Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Record

Certified copies of court records (if you've been arrested)

Copy of the principal applicant’s selection letter for the diversity visa lottery from DOS

Copy of the receipt from DOS for the diversity visa lottery processing fee

Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility (if applicable)

Applicable fees