US Embassy, Nairobi Announces 2014 Diversity Visa (Green Card) Requirements

US Embassy, Nairobi Announces 2014 Diversity Visa (Green Card) Requirements

The U.S. Embassy in Nairobi has announced the 2014 Diversity Visa requirements for the lottery winners who were notified by the Department of State of their selected status in May, 2013.

NOTE: THIS APPLIES ONLY TO DIVERSITY VISA 2014 LOTTERY WINNERS WHO WERE NOTIFIED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE (KCC PROCESSING CENTER) OF THEIR SELECTED STATUS IN MAY 2013.

Please Read Carefully!

To qualify for the 2014 Diversity Visa, you must meet the following requirements:

1. On your initial E-DV application, you must have listed your spouse even if you are currently separated from him/her, unless you are legally separated. If you are legally separated or divorced, you do not need to list your former spouse.
2. On your initial E-DV application, you must have listed ALL of your living children who are unmarried and under 21 years old. This includes your natural children, your spouse’s children, or children you have formally adopted in accordance with the laws of your country.  The only exception is if your child is already a U.S. citizen or a U.S. Legal Permanent Resident.
3. You must have entered the correct photograph of each individual into the E-DV system.  Failure to do so may result in disqualification.
4. You must have completed a formal course of elementary and secondary education comparable to 12 years of elementary and secondary education (high school) in the U.S.  Vocational degrees, without secondary certificates, are not considered equivalent to a U.S. high school education.  The U.S. Embassy Nairobi consults with our regional embassies to define what the comparable standard is for high school education in your country.

• For Kenya, you must have passed the Kenyan Certificate of Secondary Examination (KCSE) with a minimum average score of D – (Minus).  For pre-1986, the Kenya Certificate of Education (KCE) score must be a minimum of Division IV.
• For Burundi, you must have a Diploma D’Etat or Diploma A2.
• For Eritrea, you must have a minimum of five D grades on the Eritrean Secondary Education Certificate.
• For Mauritius, you must have a passing credit (Grade 6 or above) in English on the Cambridge School Certificate (SC), plus the O-level certificate with a minimum Grade 6 in four other subjects.
• For Rwanda, you must have a minimum of 13 points on the A2 diploma, or Advanced General Certificate of Secondary Education (AGCSE). For pre-2008 graduates, a minimum score of 1.5 is required on the Diploma of Secondary Education.
• For Uganda, you must have the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) A-level certificate with a minimum of one principal pass and one secondary pass out of four total subject exams.

5. If you do not qualify based on education, then you may qualify based on work experience.  You must have worked for two years within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience to perform. The U.S. Department of Labor’s O*Net On-line   http://www.onetonline.org/find/  database will be used to determine qualifying work experience. Please be advised that it is very difficult to fulfill the educational requirements based on work experience. Qualifying occupations are defined as those with Specific Vocational Preparation (SVP) rating of 7 or above, and are listed as job zone 4 or 5.

Please note the following:

• Applicants who are citizens of Somalia are advised that it is not possible for the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi to verify claimed educational or work experiences that occurred in Somalia.  Without such verification, it may not be possible to process such cases to completion.
• If you submit any fraudulent documents with your application, you will be ineligible to receive a visa.  Documents presented are subject to independent verification; do not take the risk of presenting a false document.
• Marrying a person in order to confer an immigration benefit through the Diversity Visa WILL result in a permanent ineligibility for both you and your spouse.
• Visa fees cannot be refunded. DV applicants must meet all qualifications for the visa. If a Consular Officer determines an applicant does not meet requirements for the visa, or is otherwise ineligible for the DV under U.S. law, the officer cannot issue a visa and the applicant will forfeit all fees paid.

Please be advised that there is no guarantee that Diversity Visas will be available after the month of your scheduled appointment.  Under no circumstances can a visa be issued after September 30, 2014.

–nairobi.usembassy