HELLO,Someone help me to get this clear, there are so many companies and individuals advertising this type of visa or green card lottary.I have never been to the states and I have never personally known anybody who qualified for this visa, I think his is due to the little turn up of people applying from my country.what is the bestway to apply? is it through company or through online at

ttp://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants_types_diversity3.html

some one tell me what is the bestway of doing this,where can i fill the forms from? am in canada now.

Follow the instructions carefully on how to fill the application online. It's quite easy. You do not need any help for this if you understand the content of the instructions. Good luck!

I personally know several people who have immigrated via the DV lottery, some successfull after their first attempt, others persistently participated year after year; it's truly a lottery and no commercial assistance will increase or eliminate your chances. It will just add to the cost of your adjustment and procedures that you need to carefully follow and pay for. The expenses should be around $700-1000 from start to successfull finish (if you're not drawn, your expenses are, of course, just a few dollars - pictures, envelope and stamps if you do it yourself). Good luck!

You don't need envelope and stamps - everything is done online, for the second year in a row. And if you have a digital camera, you don't even spend a penny on the picture.

After you win the lottery... how long, on average, does it take to have the actual green card in your hands? Does anyone know?

Fresh Taco, it depends when you are called for an interview. The interview can be sometime between Oct and Sept (12 months) which also depends on your case number. Say you case number is very low, 100 for instance, you will be interviewed in the first month (Oct). If they find you eligible at the interview, they will hand you some paperwork to carry with you that needs to be shown at the the port of entry. Upon your arrival, your passport will be stamped with a temporary status to become an immigrant. They stamp on your passport stating that you are eligible to work in USA. You may have to wait for a couple of months to receive your permanent green card from the date of your arrival.

SA, thanks for your reply. Do you know if the procedure and time frame varies at all if the individual (who has never been illegal) is in the US under AOS based on relative petition?