Spousal visa vs Diversity Lottery winners

[mallafri76 1,012]

Just heard about the diversity lottery process from a distant friend who won a green card through the diversity lottery. She says the process is very short and completed within months. All she has to do is fill out the DS-260, collect her documents and bring to the interview at the embassy. She says she started her process two months ago and already have an interview next month. It's gone so fast that she'll have to re-schedule her interview because she won't be ready on time. How flipping unfair is that????

We are married to United States citizens and our process takes at least a year. Someone who just wins a green card, with no ties to the US, can get the green card within a matter of months. Is this true or is she just not understanding the diversity lottery process? I mean I know the US immigration process is messed up but can it be THIS messed up???

[V24 21]

That is very frustrating.

[Andrea&Henry 311]

I personally met 2 cases. The ex boyfriend of a friend of mine and coincidentally, while I was attending my k1 visa interview with my now husband there was a couple right there getting their green card papers cause they won the gc lottery like 2-3 months before. Is super fast.

[aaron2020 11,651]

Oh boy. Here we go again with the complaints about how others get better treatment than ME and MINE.

A DV winner starts with an application about a year before the DV. You neglect to consider this wait time. This is equivalent to the time it takes for the I-130.

You have to prove a bona fide relationship - which takes time to verify. A DV does not have to prove this.

Different processes are going to take different time. It's not a matter of priorities. Some things takes longer than others because of the different requirements.

[mallafri76 1,012]

Oh boy. Here we go again with the complaints about how others get better treatment than ME and MINE.

A DV winner starts with an application about a year before the DV. You neglect to consider this wait time. This is equivalent to the time it takes for the I-130.

You have to prove a bona fide relationship - which takes time to verify. A DV does not have to prove this.

Different processes are going to take different time. It's not a matter of priorities. Some things takes longer than others because of the different requirements.

Aaron, it's not a complaint about how "others get better treatment than ME and MINE". I don't have an issue with people applying for and getting approved for expedites (I'm sure they needed the expedite), or some countries getting auto-expedited (I'm sure there's a reason for it) or the K-1 visa only taking six months (it's a non-immigrant visa and they need to adjust status in the US). That's fair enough. But when someone wins the green card lottery and only have to go through a process four to six months long (with no ties to the US), when all of us on the spousal visa have to endure a year or longer away from our US citizen husband or wife, yeah that feels a little unfair.... And I'm one of the lucky ones that can fly over and visit my husband in the US whenever I feel like it. I can only imagine how heartbreaking it must be for those in high fraud countries or non-VWP countries, who can't even visit during this ridiculously long process. Good for you if you feel that the spousal visa process is fair and that the year long process is a fair timeframe, kudos to you. Personally, I think it's a ridiculously long and unfair process that needs to be looked at and improved.

[aaron2020 11,651]

Aaron, it's not a complaint about how "others get better treatment than ME and MINE". I don't have an issue with people applying for and getting approved for expedites (I'm sure they needed the expedite), or some countries getting auto-expedited (I'm sure there's a reason for it) or the K-1 visa only taking six months (it's a non-immigrant visa and they need to adjust status in the US). That's fair enough. But when someone wins the green card lottery and only have to go through a process four to six months long (with no ties to the US), when all of us on the spousal visa have to endure a year or longer away from our US citizen husband or wife, yeah that feels a little unfair.... And I'm one of the lucky ones that can fly over and visit my husband in the US whenever I feel like it. I can only imagine how heartbreaking it must be for those in high fraud countries or non-VWP countries, who can't even visit during this ridiculously long process. Good for you if you feel that the spousal visa process is fair and that the year long process is a fair timeframe, kudos to you. Personally, I think it's a ridiculously long and unfair process that needs to be looked at and improved.

If you want to compare Apple to Apple, then do it fairly.

You: I-130 wait time for approval + NVC wait + US Embassy wait = 6-12 months on average.

DV: DV application wait until fiscal year starts (approximately 1 year) + NVC wait + US Embassy wait = much longer than a year.

If you compare your entire wait time vs only a part of the DV's wait time at the NVC and U.S. embassy and omit the time it took to determine the DV winners, then you are making an unfair comparison.

Edited September 11, 2015 by aaron2020

[arken 4,197]

Aaron, it's not a complaint about how "others get better treatment than ME and MINE". I don't have an issue with people applying for and getting approved for expedites (I'm sure they needed the expedite), or some countries getting auto-expedited (I'm sure there's a reason for it) or the K-1 visa only taking six months (it's a non-immigrant visa and they need to adjust status in the US). That's fair enough. But when someone wins the green card lottery and only have to go through a process four to six months long (with no ties to the US), when all of us on the spousal visa have to endure a year or longer away from our US citizen husband or wife, yeah that feels a little unfair.... And I'm one of the lucky ones that can fly over and visit my husband in the US whenever I feel like it. I can only imagine how heartbreaking it must be for those in high fraud countries or non-VWP countries, who can't even visit during this ridiculously long process. Good for you if you feel that the spousal visa process is fair and that the year long process is a fair timeframe, kudos to you. Personally, I think it's a ridiculously long and unfair process that needs to be looked at and improved.

DV is a program through which US wants to bring people from diversified community so that US becomes a diverse country. Only 50,000 entrants will be selected out of several millions applications each year. So getting DV in itself is as hard as getting Mega million lottery. So average DV lotterly winnner could already have waiter for years before getting selected. The most important part is people can't misuse DV lottery system to come to US. The only requirement is 12 years of study or equivalent work experience.

On the other hand, people have been misusing the the immigration path to US by having US citizens marry foreigners at some cost with no bonafide relationship to bring them to US. Just two days ago, there was a news about a Chinese father and daughter from Los Angeles whose organization filed over 70 petitions for fake spouses of US citizens by creating fake marriage ceremonies, fake honeymoons, fake travel plans. They would take over $50K from the beneficiary and pay around $10K to participating US citizens including homeless persons. They earned over $3.5 millions in a decade by doing that. That is just one example, there could be hundreds operating in such a way. How does USCIS differentiate those petitions from yours or mine who claim our marriages/relationships are real? I bet your or mine applications and their applications look similar. That's why USCIS has to scrutinize each and every paper looking for bonafide relationship to sort out fake ones and it will take time. I bet if US starts giving out immigrant visas within few months of marriage just because one is married to a US citizen, there will be thousands of people coming to US on fake marriages.

Edited September 11, 2015 by arken

[KierenHby 899]

mallafri.. you do have a point, and sometimes things can seem inherently unfair. Though grass can appear to be greener on the other side.

In a way, you are advantageous to be able to fly to meet your hubby at will. Most here are not that lucky. (A VJ member here had a baby, and was away from spouse on their first anniversary; now that is tough.. whether or not baby was planned.)

The entire immi process could, however, use some improvements, with some built-in practical advantages for USCs. We do hope you get cc soon. Good luck.

[mallafri76 1,012]

mallafri.. you do have a point, and sometimes things can seem inherently unfair. Though grass can appear to be greener on the other side.

In a way, you are advantageous to be able to fly to meet your hubby at will. Most here are not that lucky. (A VJ member here had a baby, and was away from spouse on their first anniversary; now that is tough.. whether or not baby was planned.)

The entire immi process could, however, use some improvements, with some built-in practical advantages for USCs. We do hope you get cc soon. Good luck.

Thanks for your encouraging words. Yes, 79 days on NVC supervisor review and with no way of getting hold of the supervisor and then hearing my acquaintance talk about how fast her diversity lottery process is, sure is tough on the nerves to say the least.

I agree with you, the entire immi process definitely need some improvements.

[mallafri76 1,012]

Aaron and Arken, I appreciate your explanation about the diversity lottery. That's what I wanted to find out about that process versus the spousal visa, if my acquaintance was right about what she was saying, that the diversity lottery process only takes six months. I guess she didn't really start counting her process until she began it in May, not taking into consideration the time she waited before that.

[Ryan H 3,812]

Moved from IR-1/CR-1 Process & Procedures to General Immigration-Related Discussion.

[EmilyW 1,437]

With all due respect, your friend has given you completely inaccurate information.

I'm a DV winner and the timeframe is nowhere near as easy as what you have been told:

• I entered the lottery on 23 October 2013. Yes, 2013.
• I found out I had won a spot to proceed to the next stage in May 2014. Six month wait. Bear in mind, this doesn't mean I get the visa. It just means I get to apply for one and that I may get an interview.
• My case number (all DV winners are given a number and you just have to wait until a visa becomes available) meant that it was April 2015 until I was able to get an interview at the Consulate.

No, we don't have to have ties. But we do have to have a high school diploma as a minimum (I'm pretty sure that spousal visas don't have that requirement). We have to prove we won't become a public charge. We have to prove we are of good moral character. We have to jump all the hoops and then some that other visas don't have to jump through.

Our wait was 18 months from start to finish. There are people in my fiscal year who, by the time they get their visa, it will be a two year wait from start to finish. There will not be a single person who has a six month wait on a DV. We have to wait six months to even find out if we have won. Another six months before the earliest interviews begin. Basically a 12 month wait before we even get a chance to interview. That's for everyone.

All visas have their trade-offs. The DV lottery trade off is that, yes, we don't have to prove ties. But there are no guarantees we will win the lottery and no guarantee we will even get an interview before the end of the fiscal year in which we are selected.

Edited September 12, 2015 by EmilyW

[mallafri76 1,012]

No, we don't have to have ties. But we do have to have a high school diploma as a minimum (I'm pretty sure that spousal visas don't have that requirement). We have to prove we won't become a public charge. We have to prove we are of good moral character. We have to jump all the hoops and then some that other visas don't have to jump through.

Our wait was 18 months from start to finish. There are people in my fiscal year who, by the time they get their visa, it will be a two year wait from start to finish. There will not be a single person who has a six month wait on a DV. We have to wait six months to even find out if we have won. Another six months before the earliest interviews begin. Basically a 12 month wait before we even get a chance to interview. That's for everyone.

All visas have their trade-offs. The DV lottery trade off is that, yes, we don't have to prove ties. But there are no guarantees we will win the lottery and no guarantee we will even get an interview before the end of the fiscal year in which we are selected.

No, on the spousal visa, the foreign spouse don't have to have a high school diploma, but we do have A LOT of other hoops to jump through. With all due respect, don't think that just because someone is married to a United States Citizen, they don't have a whole lot of hoops to jump. In our first phase (USCIS), we have to show proof of bona fida relationship, which means sending in personal information shared between a husband and wife and then wait five to six months to see if USCIS accepts the proof or need more. Then we move to NVC where the USC (or LPR) have to fill out a nine page (12 now) financial form with their personal financial information to show that the foreign spouse won't become a public charge. This means telling the USC/LPR's salary for the last three years, send in a copy of the tax return for the last year, get an employment letter, show paystubs.... Then same as you on the diversity lottery, medical exam and interview.

So you have a 12 month wait before you even get a chance to interview. That's pretty much the same as us on the spousal visas, and we are married to United States citizens or Permanent Residents. With all due respect, if you look at it objectively, you don't think there is something wrong with the visa process when someone who wins a green card through a lottery have the same visa timeframe as someone married to a United States citizen and sometimes a shorter process than someone married to a US Permanent Resident? In my opinion, the diversity lottery has a normal timeframe for that kind of visa, a year sounds reasonable, it's the spousal visa that has a ridiculously long process timeframe that needs to be looked at.

There are no guarantees on the spousal visa either. I've heard people on here who have been married for years, some even have children together, and their visa is denied. There was a couple on here not that long ago who went through a five year process before the foreign spouse finally had the visa in hand. How crazy is that?!?!

[aaron2020 11,651]

No, on the spousal visa, the foreign spouse don't have to have a high school diploma, but we do have A LOT of other hoops to jump through. With all due respect, don't think that just because someone is married to a United States Citizen, they don't have a whole lot of hoops to jump. In our first phase (USCIS), we have to show proof of bona fida relationship, which means sending in personal information shared between a husband and wife and then wait five to six months to see if USCIS accepts the proof or need more. Then we move to NVC where the USC (or LPR) have to fill out a nine page (12 now) financial form with their personal financial information to show that the foreign spouse won't become a public charge. This means telling the USC/LPR's salary for the last three years, send in a copy of the tax return for the last year, get an employment letter, show paystubs.... Then same as you on the diversity lottery, medical exam and interview.

So you have a 12 month wait before you even get a chance to interview. That's pretty much the same as us on the spousal visas, and we are married to United States citizens or Permanent Residents. With all due respect, if you look at it objectively, you don't think there is something wrong with the visa process when someone who wins a green card through a lottery have the same visa timeframe as someone married to a United States citizen and sometimes a shorter process than someone married to a US Permanent Resident? In my opinion, the diversity lottery has a normal timeframe for that kind of visa, a year sounds reasonable, it's the spousal visa that has a ridiculously long process timeframe that needs to be looked at.

There are no guarantees on the spousal visa either. I've heard people on here who have been married for years, some even have children together, and their visa is denied. There was a couple on here not that long ago who went through a five year process before the foreign spouse finally had the visa in hand. How crazy is that?!?!

A DV applicant has a less than 5% chance of winning and getting an immigration visa. Spouses of a USC or LPR has a much higher chance of getting an immigration visa.

Some DV applicants enter the DV multiple times and wait decades to win. More often they don't win and give up after many years.

I find it funny that you think the DV wait time is reasonable but the wait time you have to endure for a spousal visa is not reasonable.

[EmilyW 1,437]

With all due respect, I never said that 'just because someone is married to a United States Citizen, they don't have a whole lot of hoops to jump'. I very clearly stated that all visas involve some element of trade off. None of them are easy.

FYI, a year for a DV lottery winner from start to finish applies to only a handful of cases. Bear in mind that interviews for the DV lottery run over twelve months. The only people who have a 12 month wait are those who manage to get an interview in the first month of the fiscal year. The rest of us (90% of the pool) have to wait until our case is called and, as I stated in my original post, some wait up to 12 months, in addition to the 12 months from the time of entry to the start of the fiscal year. And with no guarantee. Once the fiscal year ends, and you haven't been called for an interview, your visa disappears and you have to re-enter and hope you win again. There is one fellow Aussie who entered 14 years in a row before finally winning and getting her visa.

It's not our fault that the immigration process for the diversity lottery is structured the way it is. The very nature of the lottery - based on a fiscal year - will mean that some of our visas will get processed faster than spousal visas. But it's a fact that only a handful will be processed faster. The vast majority will be far longer than twelve months and - once again - with no guarantee that you will even get an interview and, subsequently, a visa.

I'm not saying the process for spousal visas is fair. My brother is doing AOS after marrying his American wife and it's taking forever. But to compare apples and oranges (which is the case when comparing spousal visas (which are for the purposes of reunion) and diversity lottery visas (which are for an entirely different purpose of introducing diversity to the American community on a fiscal year basis)) is problematic, in my opinion.

Edited September 12, 2015 by EmilyW