The US State Department has still not opened registration for the new season of the Diversity Visa (DV) program, known as the Green Card Lottery. Registration typically begins in early October, but the fourth week of the month is drawing to a close, and the official start has yet to take place, according to reports.
Agency representatives only report that registration will begin "soon," without disclosing the reasons for the delay. No official comment on specific deadlines has yet been received.
Experts attribute the delay to the possible introduction of a 1 USD registration fee for participating in the lottery. Registration was previously free. Implementing a paid registration system requires the creation of a reliable infrastructure to accept payments from millions of participants worldwide, which may explain the technical delays.
If a fee is introduced, potential participants will need an international payment card to pay for registration.
