UNB, Dhaka :A good number of countries, including Bangladesh, India and Pakistan, will not be eligible to apply for the 2016 Diversity Visa (DV) Program as the countries sent over 50,000 immigrants to the United States in the previous five years.The other ineligible countries are Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, South Korea, the United Kingdom (except northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam.Natives of these countries are not eligible to apply because the countries also sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the United States in the previous five years.The 2016 Diversity Visa Program (DV-2016) will open on Wednesday and close November 3, said a media note issued by the office of the Spokesperson of the US Department of State on Tuesday.The congressionally-mandated Diversity Visa Program is administered on an annual basis by the Department of State and conducted under the terms of Section 203© of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).Applicants must submit entries electronically during this registration period using the electronic DV entry form (E-DV) at dvlottery.state.gov.Paper entries will not be accepted. All entrants must print and retain their online confirmation page after completing their DV entries so that they will be able to check their entry status.”We strongly encourage applicants not to wait until the last week of the registration period to enter. Heavy demand may result in website delays. No entries will be accepted after November 3,” it said.The annual DV program makes visas available to persons meeting the simple, but strict, eligibility requirements.The Department of State implemented the electronic registration system beginning with DV-2005 in order to make the DV process more efficient and secure.Successful entrants will receive instructions for how to apply for immigrant visas for themselves and their eligible family members.
