U.S. to introduce $1 registration fee for green card lottery
The United States Department of State has announced that, starting October 16, 2025, applicants for the Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery will be required to pay a $1 electronic registration fee. This is the first time participants will be charged to enter the annual “green card lottery,” reports a Kazinform News Agency correspondent.
According to the Department, the measure is designed to spread administrative costs more evenly among millions of registrants, rather than leaving the burden on the limited number of lottery winners who proceed to visa applications. The new rule will apply to the DV-2027 program, with registration opening in early October 2025.
The fee will be paid online through the official U.S. government portal at the time of registration. The existing $330 visa application fee for selected entrants remains unchanged. However, certain administrative expenses previously covered by that fee will now be offset through the new registration charge. The $1 payment is non-refundable and cannot be transferred between lottery years.
The Department of State noted that the program receives around 25 million entries each year for a maximum of 55,000 immigrant visas. The new policy is expected to generate about $25 million annually, funding system maintenance, data security, and fraud prevention. Officials also expect the fee to discourage fraudulent mass submissions by third-party intermediaries.
Earlier, it was reported that nearly 110,000 people marched through London last Friday in a self-styled “Unite the Kingdom” rally against immigration. Demonstrators carried the Union Flag and England’s St George’s Cross, chanting slogans critical of Prime Minister Keir Starmer and opposing immigration.
