14ymedio, Havana, August 20, 2020 — Cuba was the third country in Latin America with the largest number of winners of the well-known U.S. Visa Lottery, held each year.
Those chosen for the Program of Diversity DV-2021 were 1,872 Venezuelans, 1,559 Peruvians and 1,235 Cubans, who will have to do the paperwork for U.S. residence in the next fiscal year, which begins on October 1, 2020.
The other Latin American countries that participated had between 1 and 246 beneficiaries. The following countries were excluded this year: Bangladesh, Canada, China (born in the continental area), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica and Mexico.
The Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs said it offered 55,000 visas that granted green cards to people from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.
The registered applicants for the DV-2021 program were selected randomly from 6,741,128 qualified entries, received during the application period of 35 days that extended from October 2, 2019 until November 6, 2019, they said.
“The visas have been distributed among six geographic regions with a maximum of 7% available for people born in any country,” said the note.
The Island has stood out in the last 10 years as one of the countries with a large number of citizens admitted in the Lottery. For this fiscal year, the participation of Cubans was marked by the incorporation of a new requirement in the draw: having a current and valid passport at the time of entry.
Although the demand can be made only by the applicant, not the dependents, not everyone on the Island can count on having this document of identity because of its high cost, so this new rule influenced some to try their luck later.
To that is added the uncertainty of not being able to count on the presence of a consular section in the United States Embassy on the Island, and they will have to travel to Guyana to request the visa and do other paperwork like that for family reunification. Thousands of people are worried about the migratory veto of the present administration, which is maintained until December.
The Department of State also clarified that in the visa interview, the principal applicant must provide proof of a secondary education or its equivalent, or show two years of work experience in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience in the last five years.
It was also announced that there will be visa lotteries for 2022, and the dates for the program’s registration period will be published in the coming months.
“Those interested in entering the DV-2022 program should consult the web page of the Department of State Visa in the next months,” the press release specified.
Translated by Regina Anavy
__________________
COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
