Take some time to research out some facts, before u make decission in hurry,
Learn others experience, before u believe anyone words/advise. then make ur best decision
If u are asking my Personal opinion? then I would like to say if u are excepting EB decission soon from USCIS, then prefer EB and better Stick with EB catagory. and delay the interview somehow. be smart and do not close that door. I hope ur EB1 catagory and enough smart to deal how to
.
some FAQ's , it may help u.
the Link :
http://www.eskimo.com/~parents/webpre//dv/winfaq.html#5
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I've "won", what now?
Carefully read the instructions! If you are outside the USA, send the forms back to the NVC. Make copies of the filled out forms and keep them, in case the letter to the NVC gets lost or something.
If you are legally in the USA you have a decission to make (see below).
Can I use a courrier service (FedEX/DHL/UPS) to send my forms back to the NVC?
Yes, the limitation to postal mail only applies to the lottery entries. It might not be a bad idea to use one of those express mail services, then you have a receipt, and you know that and when the NVC got it.
What are those rank/case numbers people talk about?
Your case number is noted on the bottom of the cover page of the notification package you got from the NVC.
Each year 50000 to 55000 DV visas are issued. Multiple millions of people participate to get one of those, some just for fun, some die, some move, some don't qualify and for some the notification letter that they've won might get lost in the mail. The point is, not everyone selected in the drawing will get an immigrant visa.
The law requires that those 50 some thousand visas are issued. So in order not be stuck with 25000 visas at the end of the fiscal year because 1/2 of the people were no shows, the NVC mails about twice as many letters out ~100,000 notifying people that they are "registered for further consideration in the DV" program.
Now they have solved the problem of having not enough applicants, but they have created a new one for themselves: Now they might have more applicants than visas. So they had to come up with some kind of system to prioritize applicants. They just randomly assign each of the ~100,000 "winners" a rank number, within his/her region of chargeability (EUrope, ASia etc.). Then they issue the visas in ascending order of rank (or case) number to the qualifying applicants.
Each month the State Department publishes cut-off numbers in the visa bulletin You can only get an immigrant visa once the cut-off number is above your case number.
If you get a really high number, all the visas might be gone by the time it's your turn, and that's just tough luck then.
How much financial support do I need?
You basically have to convince the consular officer that it is unlikely that you will need public assistance once here. That means, you have loads of money, already a job, or a job offer, an affidavit of support, that's an American citizen or resident who signs that he will pay back the government, should it need to support you during your first 3 years, or it is obvious that even though you don't have a job offer you will most likely have no problem at all getting one before your savings run out.
There are no strict guidelines, I've read stories of people who got past this requirement solely on their job skills (computer professional) without job offer, or affidavit of support.
Basically you should have a pretty good and convincing idea, how you are going to support yourself here.
It seems the INS itself doesn't quite know what "public charge" means. Read this proposed rule on clarifying that in the Federal Register
By the way, if you want to file an affidavit of support, use the old form (I-134), not the new one (I-864). (see here)
I am currently in the USA, what does that mean "You may be elligible to apply to the INS for adjustment of status"?
Adjustment of status means, adjusting your status from that of a legal non-immigrant to that of a permanent resident (i.e. green card holder), basically getting it taken care of within the USA. You may be elligible means that you can only do that if you are here legally (i.e. you haven't overstayed, become out of status in INS lingo), and are not otherwise inelligible to receive a green card (e.g. due to a crminial conviction, J visa 2 year home residence requirement etc.).
Make sure you know the pros and cons of consular vs. adjustment of status, before deciding what to do.
What are the pros and cons of consular processing vs. adjustment of status?
Let's start with adjustment of status: On the pro side we obviously have that you don't have to leave the country. The biggest factor speaking against adjustment of status is that the INS might not get around to finish your adjustment of status case by the end of the fiscal year (Sep. 30th), in which case you wouldn't get a green card. That has happened in the past. Read this story of someone who got his greencard in the end, but had some trouble on the way. Some lawyer was even considering a class action law suite.
In addition to that the paperwork for adjustment of status is more involved, and in general you will be treated with more dignity at a consulate in your home country (well that probably depends on where you are from, I can only speak for western Europe).
So basically it only becomes an issue because of the time limit. The DV program is a State Department program, the consulates are under the state department as well, so it's all within one agency, and the interaction between the various offices should work smoothly.
The INS is under the Department of Justice, a completely different branch of the government, also the FBI will be involved to check your fingerprints. So you have 3 agencies required to communicate with each other. Miscommunications and delays do happen.
Basically, with adjustment of status you should constantly be on top of your case, and you probably will worry a bit. With consular processing, you send back the forms to the NVC, and wait for the invitation to the interview.
On misc.immigration.usa it was suggested that you are probably fine with adjustment of status if you have a low case number, but should try consular processing if your case number is high, and your adjustment of status couldn't be filed early in the fiscal year.
On the con side for consular processing is obviously that you have to fly over there, but also that you probably won't be able to come back here should you not get the immigrant visa.
In the end it's a choice you have to make for yourself. (Or pay some professional with DV experience for advice, it really depends on the individual circumstances here)
To not rely entirely on internet sources I conducted an interview on this issue with Greg Gourley from newamericans.com, a submission service. Read it here.
I want to adjust status, but am confused, do I need to send back the forms to the NVC as stated on the cover letter, or not, as stated on the adjustment of status instruction page?
Don't send the forms back to NVC, that will initiate the consular processing. Follow the instruction from the adjustment of status page. Just go to the closest INS office and pick up an adjustment of status package. You won't be able to file before October 1st.
Can I choose which consulate to go to?
In general only the immigrant visa issuing consulate serving the place of your current residence, or your country of citizenship if you are in the USA, is required to process your immigration request.
I guess you can always ask to be processed at another consulate, but I read it is really unlikely that they would accept your case just because it is more convenient for you.
I am in the USA, but have overstayed my visa. Will that be a problem?
Depends on how long you overstayed. You won't be able to adjust status in the USA with the INS. If you were out of status for more than 180 days you will be banned to enter the USA for 3 years. But if you were out of status for less than 180 days you can go for consular processing, otherwise you are out of luck.
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Some more links to explore.
http://www.fraudaid.com/ScamSpam/Lottery/green_card_scam/instructions_for_the_2006_04.htm
http://www.usembassyjakarta.org/consular/faq-dv2006.html
Proposed Bill Would Eliminate Diversity Visa Lottery http://www.usvisanews.com/articles/memo2440.shtml
http://www.infodomain.com/ask.htm
http://www.immigration.com/faq/diversityvisa.html
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Good Luck
