Green Card lottery returns with stricter passport rules, Indians ineligible

Green Card lottery: New DV-2027 rules will require passport details and scans, tightening identity checks and aiming to curb fraud in the Green Card lottery

Months after pausing it altogether, the United States has now finalised new rules for the Diversity Immigrant Visa Programme, commonly known as the Green Card lottery. The rule will take effect on April 10, 2026, introducing stricter identity verification requirements for applicants.

 

The US Department of State published the final regulation in the Federal Register under the title “Visas: Enhancing Vetting and Combatting Fraud in the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program”.

 

Under the updated regulation, individuals entering the visa lottery must provide details from a valid, unexpired passport as part of their electronic entry form. Applicants will also need to upload a scan of the passport’s biographic and signature page(s) when submitting their entry, unless they qualify for a specific exemption.

   

Why the US introduced the new rule

 

The Diversity Visa Programme offers immigration opportunities to people from countries with historically low levels of immigration to the United States. Each year, up to 55,000 immigrant visas are allocated through a computerised random selection process.

 

However, authorities say the programme has long faced issues such as fraudulent entries, duplicate applications, and submissions made by third parties without the knowledge of applicants.

 

According to the State Department, requiring passport documentation will help ensure entries are linked to real individuals and make it harder for agents or intermediaries to submit multiple applications using different identities. Officials have previously pointed to organised schemes in several countries where large numbers of entries were filed on behalf of unsuspecting individuals.

 

Passport upload requirement explained

 

Under the final rule, applicants entering the Diversity Visa lottery must include passport details and upload a digital scan of the passport’s biographic and signature pages while completing the online entry form.

 

The information required includes:

 

• Passport number

• Country or authority that issued the passport

• Passport expiration date

• A scanned copy of the passport’s biographic and signature page(s)

 

Entries that do not include the required passport documentation may be disqualified.

 

The regulation also provides limited exceptions. Individuals who are stateless, unable to obtain a passport due to government restrictions, or who receive specific waivers from US authorities may be exempt from the requirement.

 

The passport rule itself is not entirely new. A similar measure introduced in 2019 to curb fraud was struck down by a US federal court in 2022. The court held that the government had not followed the required public notice and comment procedures before implementing the rule, rejecting its argument that immigration regulations fall under “foreign affairs” exemptions.

 

Other changes to the DV programme

 

The rule also introduces technical updates to programme guidance and instructions.

 

Among these changes:

 

• The term “gender” will be replaced with “sex”

• “Age” will be replaced with “date of birth”

 

Officials say these updates are intended to improve consistency and accuracy in visa data collection.

 

Implementation for upcoming applicants

 

According to the State Department, the new requirements will apply starting with the DV-2027 lottery.

 

The department has delayed the launch of the DV-2027 registration period and has not yet announced when entries will open.

 

The Diversity Visa lottery attracts millions of applicants globally each year, making it one of the most widely accessed immigration routes to the United States. With the latest rule now in place, applicants will need to ensure they have a valid passport ready at the time of applying, as identity verification is set to become a central part of the process.

 

Pause and background to the rule

 

In December 2025, the Trump administration had suspended the Green Card lottery following a mass shooting at Brown University in which two people were killed. The suspect, a Portuguese national later found dead, had entered the US through the Diversity Visa programme in 2017 and was granted a Green Card.

 

Indians still do not qualify for the lottery

 

Indian nationals remain ineligible for the Diversity Visa lottery, at least until 2028.

 

The programme is designed to diversify the immigrant population in the United States by selecting applicants from countries with lower levels of migration. It is limited to nationals of countries that have sent fewer than 50,000 immigrants to the US over the past five years.

 

India, with consistently high migration numbers, exceeds this threshold.

 

• In 2021, 93,450 Indians immigrated to the US

• In 2022, the number rose to 127,010

• In 2023, 78,070 Indians immigrated

 

These figures exceed the eligibility cap, keeping India out of the programme for now.

 

Other countries currently ineligible for the DV-2026 lottery include China, South Korea, Canada, and Pakistan.