By Bradley Shahenza
Kenyans will be required to spend more in October 2025 when applying for the Diversity Visa (DV) lottery program.
The DV lottery is a United States government program that makes 55,000 immigrant visas available each year, enabling individuals and families to get a Permanent Resident card (Green Card) in the country, even if they don’t have family or employment ties.
These visas are awarded randomly to people from countries with historically low immigration rates to the United States.
However, the U.S. Department of State published a new rule that changes how the program is funded.
Starting with the DV-2027 program, a small registration fee will be applicable. Applicants will be required to pay a $1(Ksh129) electronic registration fee when submitting their entry.
This rule is set to take effect with the new registration period this month, when applications are scheduled to open.
The rule was published in the Federal Register in September 2025, but the Department of State announced that the payment requirement would only be enforced beginning with the next open registration period.
This means that DV-2026 and earlier lotteries remain unaffected.
Only those entering from October 2025 onward will be subject to the new payment step.Â
