A Revived Rule Changes How Applicants Enter the Green Card Lottery
The U.S. Department of State has officially reinstated a passport requirement for participants in the Diversity Visa lottery program, marking a significant policy shift that will directly affect millions of hopeful applicants worldwide. The final rule was published on March 10, 2026, and is set to take effect 30 days after its appearance in the Federal Register — meaning it will be fully in force when the DV-2028 lottery opens this fall.
This requirement was not entirely new. A similar rule was initially proposed back in 2019 but was subsequently struck down by a federal court in 2022. Its revival signals the State Department’s renewed determination to address longstanding integrity issues within the lottery system.
What the New Rule Actually Requires
Mandatory Passport Submission at Registration
Under the reinstated policy, every DV-2028 lottery applicant must provide a valid, unexpired passport number at the time of submitting their entry. This is a hard requirement — not optional documentation — meaning anyone without access to a current passport will be unable to register for the lottery during the application window.
Previously, applicants could enter the lottery without holding a passport, obtaining travel documents only after being selected. The new rule eliminates that flexibility entirely.
Why the State Department Is Enforcing This Change
According to officials, the primary motivation behind the policy is to combat the persistent problem of duplicate and fraudulent lottery entries. The Diversity Visa program has long been vulnerable to manipulation, with bad actors submitting multiple entries under different identities to artificially improve their odds of selection. Tying each entry to a unique, government-issued passport number is intended to make such abuse significantly more difficult.
Who Will Be Most Affected
Financial and Administrative Burden on Applicants
While the State Department estimates the average cost of obtaining a passport in eligible countries at approximately US $75, immigration advocates have raised serious concerns about the real-world impact of this requirement on vulnerable populations.
Critics argue that the added financial burden and bureaucratic complexity will disproportionately affect low-income applicants in Africa and Asia — the very communities the Diversity Visa program was originally designed to benefit by broadening immigration pathways beyond traditionally dominant source countries.
The Timeline Problem
Beyond the cost, advocates point to a practical obstacle that may prove even more challenging — in many eligible countries, obtaining a passport can take several months from application to issuance. Given that the DV lottery registration window typically spans only about 30 days, applicants who do not already hold a valid passport may find it virtually impossible to secure one in time to participate.
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This creates a scenario where the requirement effectively disqualifies large numbers of otherwise eligible applicants not because of their immigration status, but simply because of where they live and how long their government takes to process travel documents.
Impact on U.S. Employers and Global Talent Pipelines
A Narrower Talent Pool for American Companies
For U.S. businesses that have historically relied on the Diversity Visa program as a cost-effective avenue for bringing in international talent — particularly workers who do not require employment-based sponsorship — this policy change presents a strategic challenge. The DV program offered a relatively rare pathway through which foreign nationals could obtain permanent residency independently, without burdening employers with the time and expense of sponsoring an employment visa.
With the applicant pool likely to shrink under the new passport requirement, companies that incorporated DV selection into their long-term hiring strategies should begin recalibrating their projections now. Alternative pathways worth exploring include the EB-5 investor visa queue and Canada’s tech-talent immigration streams, both of which serve different but potentially overlapping talent acquisition goals.
Guidance for Global Mobility and HR Teams
Corporate immigration and global mobility professionals should take practical steps in response to this development. Updating internal intranet resources, pre-departure checklists, and immigration guidance documents to reflect the new DV requirements is an immediate priority. For employees or prospective hires who may be considering the DV route for themselves or family members, proactive communication about the passport requirement will help avoid last-minute surprises.
Where it is feasible and strategically justified, employers may want to consider covering passport-related fees for high-priority candidates as part of a broader relocation or immigration support package.
Getting Passport Help Before the DV-2028 Window Opens
For applicants who need to obtain or renew a passport before the DV-2028 lottery registration period begins, acting early is essential. Passport processing timelines vary significantly by country, and waiting until the lottery opens to begin the process is unlikely to be a viable strategy.
Services like VisaHQ offer streamlined passport and visa assistance with real-time application tracking, country-specific document checklists, and step-by-step online guidance designed to minimize errors and reduce processing delays. For applicants planning to eventually travel to or immigrate to the United States, detailed country-specific information is available at https://www.visahq.com/united-states/
Conclusion
The State Department’s reinstatement of the passport requirement for the DV-2028 Diversity Visa lottery represents one of the most consequential procedural changes to the program in recent years. While the policy carries a legitimate rationale — reducing fraudulent and duplicate entries that have long undermined the lottery’s fairness — its real-world implications for low-income applicants in passport-restricted countries are substantial and cannot be ignored. For individual applicants, the message is clear: begin the passport application process as early as possible and do not wait for the lottery window to open. For U.S. employers and global mobility teams, now is the time to reassess DV-dependent talent strategies and update internal documentation accordingly. The DV-2028 lottery will look meaningfully different from its predecessors — and preparation is the only effective response.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q: What is the new passport requirement for the DV-2028 lottery? Every applicant entering the DV-2028 Diversity Visa lottery must now provide a valid, unexpired passport number at the time of registration. Applications submitted without this information will not be accepted.
Q: When does the new passport rule take effect? The final rule was published on March 10, 2026, and takes effect 30 days after its publication in the Federal Register. It will apply to the DV-2028 lottery opening in fall 2026.
Q: Why did the State Department reinstate this requirement? Officials cite the need to reduce duplicate and fraudulent lottery entries. Linking each application to a unique government-issued passport number makes it significantly harder for bad actors to submit multiple entries under different identities.
Q: Was this rule ever in place before? Yes. A similar passport requirement was first proposed in 2019 but was struck down by a federal court in 2022. The newly published March 2026 rule represents its formal reinstatement.
Q: How much does a passport cost in eligible countries? The State Department estimates the average passport fee in eligible countries at approximately US $75, though actual costs vary by country.
Q: What should I do if I don’t have a passport yet? Apply for your passport immediately — do not wait for the lottery registration window to open. In many countries, passport processing can take several months, which may exceed the 30-day lottery registration period.
Q: How does this change affect U.S. employers? Companies that have used the DV program as part of their international talent strategy will face a smaller applicant pool. HR and global mobility teams should explore alternative immigration pathways such as EB-5 or Canadian tech-talent programs and update their internal immigration guidance accordingly.
