What is a green card and what does it give
According to a survey by Levada Center, held last fall, 53% young Russians would like to leave the country. The reasons for this can be argued for a long time., but it's a fact. And many do not want to leave somewhere, and in the citadel of freedom and democracy - the United States of America. true, so many people want to go to the USA, that the authorities have to weed them out somehow. And one of the options for such a "dropout" is a lottery.
Is considered, that the green card is just that, what can be won in the government lottery, but it is not so. Actually, green card (она же United States Permanent Resident Card) - this identification, which gives its owner the right to legally live and work in the USA. And almost 50 years this card was not even green, at least since 2010 she was returned this color again.
In fact, green card is a residence permit in the United States. I.e, it is no longer an illegal migrant or a tourist, but not yet a citizen of the state. You can get a green card for several reasons:
- come to work at the invitation of an employer from the USA;
- come to work as an outstanding specialist in their field;
- move to the USA for family reunification;
- marry a US citizen;
- obtain political asylum or refugee status;
- invest a certain amount in the US economy and create new jobs there;
- win the diversification lottery.
And only the last option attracts millions of people who want to move to the States for a better life.. The American authorities regulate the number of ordinary immigrants through a diversification lottery. So, only natives of countries with a low level of migration to the USA are eligible to participate in the lottery, and those regions receive the largest quota, of which fewer people move to the States.
Having received a green card, its owner will be able to permanently reside in the United States, including free entry-exit, work or do your business, to get education, use all the possibilities of insurance and social sphere. But the main thing is after 5 years of residence you can apply for American citizenship (but you can not submit, and through 10 years to extend the card).
There are also restrictions - the owner of the green card is required to pay taxes, spend more than half of the time in the United States and not leave the country for more than six months.
Initially, the "green card" was called the receipt of registration of a foreigner in the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), and then the receipt confirmed, that the migrant is officially registered - there were simply no illegal migrants in the USA in the 40s. After World War II, the authorities began to take more seriously the issue of immigration., and introduced a special registration document, which could be different in status for different categories of migrants. Over time, the rules got more complicated, as well as a document issued to foreigners. It is now one of the most secure documents in the world. - the green card has not only a hologram, but also optical memory.
Sample green card
The latest changes in the green card program have already been introduced under President Donald Trump, for which some categories of foreigners may not receive a document, as they are viewed as questionable (eg, lack of health insurance, bad English, getting food stamps, etc.)
Long live ethnicity
The Green Card Lottery was first played in 1995 year. The US Congress came up with the idea of distributing cherished documents 50 thousands of lucky ones, to diversify the national composition of the country.
Moreover, for different regions of the planet, different quotas: from some countries are ready to invite more people, of some - less. Some, even in a certain year, may not be included in the number of participants in the lottery. Russia was excluded from the lottery with 2005 by 2009 the years.
In general, from the total number of participants, 100 000 man. Only half of the winners get a real opportunity to take advantage of the winnings. The rest do not pass through a number of parameters:
- do the wrong paperwork,
- cannot pay the consular fee,
- do not pass an interview at the consulate.
Many return home after several months of living in the USA - people are not ready for such a gift of fate.
How to participate in the green card competition.
This is how the https page looks like://www.dvlottery.state.gov/
The questionnaire will contain standard questions, which must be answered clearly and accurately. There are few of them. Common questions about you and your family. At the end of the online application, you need to upload your photo.
From the beginning of filling out the questionnaire, you will have one hour, to send information, and you will have to start over if you do not have time to send it.
even if you do not live with your spouse(Oh), but married, you still need to indicate her or him in the questionnaire. If you have a happy marriage, fill out the questionnaires separately, so your chances of winning will increase. If you have children, who turned 18 years old and they are not married, then they can register and they.
Application and participation in the lottery is free! Don't risk the services of questionable intermediaries. The first questionnaire is simple, and even if your English is poor, intuitive. difficulties may arise with the education section. How to fill it out is written in our article.
Very nice, but no
Family worried before consulate interview, after all, according to its results, even the winner of the lottery may be deprived of the opportunity to move to the USA. The Chekhonins arrived at the consulate in full force. For each family member, including children, you had to pay the consular fee - 330 dollars.
The interview can be conducted in your native language, can you in English. Irina and Sergey were asked, where are they going and who will work. Then they asked Sergey, does he have a CV - analogue of a resume. When he said, what no, the consul smiled sweetly and said, that the family was denied entry.
The dumbfounded family asked, why, the consul clarified: Sergey works in the metallurgical industry. In America this means, that an employee can have access to classified information of enterprises. for example, know the formulas of secret alloys (!). Therefore, you need to hedge: when Sergey makes a CV, they are waiting for him again, to reconsider the case. On the same evening, the spouses sent an ill-fated resume to the consulate.. Irina and Sergei were very nervous - they had to have time to finish going through the authorities in 45 days, and the consul could consider cases and 100 days.
Fortunately, the consul promptly reviewed the resume and approved it, and the family started packing.
The best foreign lotteries, which Russians can play
Most foreign lotteries are prohibited in Russia. Nonetheless, those, who are licensed to conduct draws and sell tickets. Here are some of these organizations, who have been working on the Russian market for many years.
EuroMillions
This lottery is presented in nine countries of the European continent. On the official website of the project, anyone can purchase a ticket for one of the draws. Cash prizes are drawn twice a week, and you can find out about your winnings, by visiting your personal account on the EuroMillions website.
The EuroMillions jackpot is currently 57 million euros.
Fat
The famous Spanish lottery, whose organizers hold cash prizes every week. Unfortunately, on the official website of El Gordo there is no support for the Russian-language interface, but, Nonetheless, Russians win money are paid in full, including e-wallets or bank cards.
The El Gordo lottery ticket costs only 1 euros, and millions of people in Europe and Latin America take part in the drawings themselves.
EuroJackpot
Another lottery, which are very popular among residents of European states. Russian-language version of the interface on the official EuroJackpot website, which greatly simplifies the process of purchasing tickets and tracking the results of draws.
At the moment, the jackpot of this lottery is 21 million euros.
LottoSmile
Another equally popular lottery with a worldwide reputation. Ticket prices are not fixed and the more expensive a ticket, the greater the chance of winning. Many experienced players have noted, that LottoSmile does not have a high winning percentage due to the difficulty of choosing a winning combination of numbers.
Among other foreign lotteries, players should also pay special attention to such, как Wintrillions, MegaMillions, PowerBall, LottoLucker, SuperEnalotto, OzLotto and others. Each of these organizations have official websites, on the pages of which you have the opportunity to purchase lottery tickets and follow the drawing online
How foreign lotteries work in Russia?
As I stated above, not many foreign organizations sell lottery tickets through their official websites. Most often it looks like this: you deposit a certain amount of money for the service and order a ticket; then a special person acquires a lottery ticket on your behalf and sends you its scan. You just have to wait until the end of the drawing and contact the lottery administration, for details on how, how to collect cash reward.
I think, you get the point, that this scheme has one extra link - "agent". This person can deceive you, by simply collecting money and not providing a lottery ticket. Or fake a ticket through photo editors. In general, a lot of frauds can be done, so be careful when sending money to strangers or services, which you don't trust.
