Green Card Lottery Guide

You will find detailed guidance on how to fill out your Green Card Lottery application in this article. All fields in the application form are mandatory and must be completed. You can complete some details, such as information about your spouse and children, at a later date.

Step 1: Your characteristics

In the first step, you have to enter your name and email address to create an account. You can also enter diacritics and special characters like Ø, Å, ü, and ß. Our system will adjust everything for you automatically.

The form will ask you for the following data:

• title
• salutation
• first names
  Please enter your first name identical to the one in your passport. Additional first names will be requested later in the form.
• last name
• email
  We will send your entry confirmation, lottery result, and other important news to this address. Therefore, please enter a valid and individual email address, and under no circumstances the same as, for example, that of your spouse.
• password
  Please create a secure password that you can keep safe or remember.

Then accept the terms and conditions as well as our privacy policy and click on "Register." Your account is now created, and you will be taken to the next screen.

Personal and address data

In the following screen, the form will ask you for more personal data:

• additional first names
  If there are two or more first names in your passport, it is mandatory that you provide them here as well. It does not matter if only one of the first names is used as your call name.
• gender
  At the moment, you can only choose between the options "male" and "female" because the US authorities do not yet offer X-gender, diverse, non-binary, or genderqueer. Therefore, if in doubt, please choose the option you feel most comfortable with or as indicated in your passport.
• phone number
• address information
  Please provide your current address. Street names can be abbreviated according to common usage. If your address does not include a street name, you may also provide your post office box. If you do not have a postal code, please enter "00000" or alternatively provide an address of a relative or close friend where we can reach you. If your address changes after you have registered, please let us know immediately or change it in your customer account so that we can contact you if you win.

Biographical data, photo

On the third screen (you are still in "Step 1" of the participation process, though), you will be asked for your biographical information. These are:

• your birthday
  There is generally no minimum age for participation in the Green Card Lottery. However, participants under the age of 16 usually do not meet the necessary educational requirements.
• city of birth, country of birth
  Please enter your city of birth as it appears on your passport, as some city names are rarely changed over time. You must enter your country of birth according to current borders.

Examples:

Note: Some countries, unfortunately, are excluded from participation in the Green Card Lottery by the US authorities. However, there is still a chance to participate if:

• Your spouse was born in one of the currently approved countries, or,
• One of your parents was only temporarily residing in your country of birth at the time of your birth (e.g., for temporary work or study).

In this case, please enter the country of birth of your spouse or parent as a native country.

Education

You can apply for the Green Card if you have at least a high school diploma (or higher), defined as successful completion of a 12-year course of formal elementary and secondary education.

Alternatively, it is also sufficient to show that you have worked for at least two years (within the last five years) in a profession that usually requires completed vocational training. Thus, indicating a lower level of education does not automatically disqualify you from participation.

In our Green Card Lottery application, you will initially have the following choices:

• primary school only
• high school, no degree
• high school degree
• vocational school
• some university courses
• university degree
• some graduate-level courses
• master degree
• some doctorate level courses
• doctorate

IMPORTANT: You will not be required to prove your education degree until you win and may schedule your Green Card interview at the US Consulate.

Do you have any questions? Please feel free to contact us via our contact form!

Marital status

You can choose from the following:

• single
• married
• divorced
• widowed

Step 2: Family Data

If you are married, you must also provide your spouse's identification information. You can do this right away or add it to your account later.

Your spouse in the Green Card Lottery application

Please fill in the following information about your spouse:

• gender
• first name(s)
• last name
• date of birth
• city of birth
• country of birth
• the highest level of education
• photo

If you are separated but still officially married at the time of application, you must select "married" at this point.

However, it is up to you to decide whether or not to include your spouse in the Green Card application process in the event of winning.

You can choose to provide the photo and data of your spouse and children (if any) immediately, or and add them later in your customer account.

Same-sex spouses in the Green Card application

Married partners of the same sex must be indicated in the Green Card Lottery application if the marriage is recognized under US law. A marriage recognized by the US government is now possible in most European countries, for example, in Germany, Denmark, or France.

Registered domestic partnerships are not recognized as marriages in the DV Lottery. However, if you win, you can still marry your registered partner so that he or she also receives a Green Card.

Doubled Green Card chances for married couples

Since the spouse of a winner also receives a Green Card, married couples can double their winning chances. All you need to do is register both spouses with the Green Card Lottery. After providing your spouse's details, you will be able to register your spouse simultaneously in the next step under the tariff overview.

By doing so, you will have the following advantages:

1. You do not have to enter your spouse's data and photo again.
2. You automatically receive a € 10 discount on the participation of your spouse.
3. You double your chance of receiving a Green Card.

Children in the Green Card Lottery application

To participate in the Green Card Lottery, you must list all unmarried children under 21 years of age, unless they are US citizens. This includes:

• illegitimate children
• adopted children
• children related only to your spouse

You must also list the children of your spouse for whom you do not have custody. That is because the US government needs a complete overview of all persons who, in theory, would also be entitled to a Green Card after you win.

But: You still can decide which of the listed children you want to include in your Green Card application process in case of winning.

You must provide the following data for all children:

• gender
• first name(s)
• last name(s)
• date of birth
• city of birth
• country of birth
• photo

You can either provide this information immediately or add it to your account at a later date, but no later than October 19th, 2025.

Photo for the Green Card Lottery

In order to participate in the Green Card Lottery successfully, it is mandatory to provide a current photo of yourself in proper form. It must meet the following requirements:

• full color
• neutral, light background
• no glasses, sunglasses, or non-religious headgear
• not recognizably older than max. 6 months
• photo(s) of past lotteries may not be used again
• look frontal into the camera (not sideways)
• no copies from identity cards or passports
• minimum size of 300dpi, 5x5cm, 600x600 pixels, JPEG file

For more information, please see our Green Card Lottery Photo Requirements.

With the help of our Green Card Lottery photo tool, you can enlarge, reduce or rotate your images to fit the correct size ratio.

The correct photo format is extremely important when participating in the Green Card Lottery.

Familiy data

If you indicated that you are married and have at least one child in step 1, you will now be asked to enter your family data.

You can decide whether you want to enter this data immediately or at a later date. Your application, including all data, must be completed by October 19th, 2025 at the latest.

Step 3: Select your tariff

Services and tariffs of the Green Card Lottery

In the fourth step of the Green Card process, you will find an overview of our three tariffs - Basic, Smart, or VIP - as well as the associated services and prices. Choose the package of services that suits you best.

Green Card Lottery discount code

If you have a valid discount code, you can enter it here. The amount will automatically be deducted from the total cost.

If you do not have a discount code, leave the field blank

Green Card Lottery cost overview

At the bottom of the page, you will see the amount to be paid in total. You will also find our current seasonal discount in the listing, as well as the discount code you used, if applicable.

Payment methods

In the last step, you can choose between the following payment options:

• Credit card (AMEX, Visa, Master / Maestro, Diners Club, JCB, Discover)
• PayPal
• Sofort
• Apple Pay
• Klarna

Depending on the selected payment method, please enter the corresponding payment data and check everything for correctness once again. If you have any problems, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Finalization of the Green Card Lottery application

In the end, you can subscribe to our monthly newsletter. By doing so, you will benefit from:

✔ current US entry requirements and tips for vacationers and emigrants

✔ exclusive discounts and promotions

✔ current Green Card news

The newsletter is free of charge and can be canceled at any time.

What happens after the Green Card application?

After your Green Card application, you will receive a confirmation with your customer number via email.

We carefully check all your data and will contact you in case of any uncertainties.

If all data is correct, you will receive your official participation confirmation within the next two weeks.

We will transmit your data to the US authorities in due form and time. After the official drawing, we will inform you about the outcome of the lottery.

Of course, we will also support you on your way to your Green Card after you have won.