MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

UK Overseas Territories US State Department update on the Diversity Visa Program for 2025

US State Department admitted a technical error with its Diversity Visa (DV), resulting in incorrect selection status for some UK entrants and dependent areas

The U.S. Department of State has announced an update to the Diversity Visa (DV) Program for 2025, revealing that a technical error had previously resulted in incorrect selection status results for some entrants from Great Britain (United Kingdom) and its dependent areas.

This update comes after a lawsuit was filed on behalf of a British citizen, alleging that no British citizens were selected for the DV-2025 or DV-2026 lotteries, despite being eligible.

In its official update, the Department of State is urging all DV-2025 entrants from the UK and its dependent territories to re-check their status using their unique confirmation numbers on the Entrant Status Check website. The dependent areas affected by this correction include Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, British Indian Ocean Territory, the Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, St. Helena, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The announcement represents a significant development for those who may have been wrongfully excluded from the lottery. Diversity Visa expert Simon Paul expressed his pleasure at the news, stating, “I am delighted to hear the news that the error has been corrected, and we know have UK winners for DV2025. I will wait to hear more from the government to show that DV2026 has also been corrected, and I expect they will do all in their power to assist winners in processing their cases within the remaining time.”

However, a major challenge remains: the fast-approaching end of the fiscal year. As pointed out by attorney Curtis Morrison, who represents the plaintiff in the lawsuit, the timeline for successful applicants is extremely tight. The Department of State reminds selectees that their eligibility to apply for a visa extends only until September 30, and those visas could become unavailable before then if the allocated numbers are exhausted.