Status as of October 26, 2026: DV-2027 registration is not yet open. The State Department has not announced official registration dates. But a federal district court in Red Eagle Law, L.C. v. Rubio ordered an announcement by October 29, 2026 and a 30-day registration window starting by November 1, 2026, with selection notices by December 3. These are court-imposed deadlines, not an official State Department announcement. The government appealed (Ninth Circuit No. 26-6943) and requested a stay; the district court denied a stay October 21. The schedule may change. DV-2028 dates are also unannounced. Verify the State Department notice, official registration site and court injunction.
Registration for the DV-2027 Diversity Visa lottery (the "green card lottery") has not opened as of October 26, 2026: the U.S. Department of State announced a delay on November 5, 2025, and has not published any dates since. No dates have been announced for the next program, DV-2028, either. The only source of registration dates is the Department of State itself – the program page on travel.state.gov, the entry site dvprogram.state.gov, and a notice in the Federal Register.
DV-2027 dates ordered by the court in October 2026
| Event | Court deadline |
|---|---|
| State Department announces official details | By October 29, 2026 |
| DV-2027 registration begins, 30-day window | By November 1, 2026 |
| Selection results available | By December 3, 2026 |
The government has appealed and requested that the order be paused; an appellate stay or subsequent order could alter these deadlines. Do not enter through third-party sites or assume November 1 is a confirmed opening date. Only the official dvprogram.state.gov site accepts entries when the Department opens them. The existing passport-document and $1 registration-fee rules are separate from the court timetable. DV-2027 visa eligibility continues to end September 30, 2027.
How the lottery calendar normally works
The lottery follows the U.S. fiscal year, which begins October 1. In a normal year the cycle runs like this: the entry period opens in early October and lasts about a month, closing in early November; results become available in early May of the following year, only through Entrant Status Check on dvprogram.state.gov; selectees then apply for visas abroad or adjust status inside the U.S. during the visa year – October 1 through September 30. For example, DV-2026 registration ran October 2 – November 7, 2024, results opened May 3, 2025, and the DV-2026 visa year ends September 30, 2026.
The program number is the year visas are issued, not the year of registration: under the normal calendar, DV-2027 entries are filed in fall 2025 and visas are issued in fiscal year 2027. That is why searches for "green card lottery 2027" mix two things – a registration that was expected a year ago, and visas that are supposed to be issued starting October 2026.
What changed for DV-2027 and why registration is delayed
The Department of State prepared two new requirements for DV-2027, both adopted by regulation. The first is a registration fee: a final rule effective September 16, 2025 set a non-refundable $1 fee collected at the time of electronic entry; entry had previously been free. The visa application fee for selectees remains separate – $330 per applicant. The second is a passport requirement: a final rule published March 11, 2026 and effective April 10, 2026 requires entrants to provide valid passport information and upload a scan of the passport's biographic and signature pages with the electronic entry form (DS-5501), beginning with DV-2027. Exemptions under 22 CFR 42.2 cover stateless persons, nationals of communist-controlled countries who cannot obtain a passport from their government, and certain individual waivers.
The Department has not given an official reason for the delay; its notice refers only to "implementing certain changes to the Diversity Visa entry process." On top of that, from December 2025 the Department paused DV issuance and USCIS held DV-2026 cases filed inside the U.S.; a court temporarily vacated those measures in August 2026, but the order does not reach the DV-2027 registration calendar. How the program itself works – eligible countries, education and work-experience requirements, the selection process – is covered in the section Green Card Lottery (Diversity Visa).
Where the dates will be published
The Department of State publishes registration dates in three places: the DV Instructions on travel.state.gov, the entry site dvprogram.state.gov, and a Federal Register notice. Selection results are never sent by email or letter – only Entrant Status Check, using the confirmation number, shows them; a reminder email to check the site may arrive, but it does not announce a win. Websites claiming to have "opened DV-2027 registration" ahead of the Department, or charging to "submit an entry," are not affiliated with the U.S. government; the Department issued a specific warning about such claims in November 2025.
When is the DV-2027 green card lottery?
Under the normal calendar, DV-2027 registration was expected in fall 2025, but the Department of State postponed it, and as of October 26, 2026 it has not opened. The Department says it will announce the start date "as soon as practicable." The DV-2027 visa year is unchanged – October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.
What are the DV-2027 registration dates?
There are no official dates. When they are set, they will appear on travel.state.gov and dvprogram.state.gov; entries are filed only through the electronic DS-5501 form on dvprogram.state.gov, with the $1 fee and a passport scan. Any "DV-2027 entry" offered on third-party sites before the Department's announcement is not part of the program.
When does DV-2028 registration open?
No DV-2028 dates have been announced. In normal years the next program's registration opens in early October and closes in early November, but with DV-2027 still unopened, that pattern cannot simply be carried over to DV-2028 – the Department of State will set the calendar.
Is the green card lottery free to enter?
Since September 16, 2025, registration costs $1 – a non-refundable fee collected at electronic entry. Selectees later pay $330 to have the visa application processed – per applicant, including a spouse and children; for adjustment of status inside the U.S. this DV fee is charged separately from USCIS fees. There are no other official charges for entering; a fee "for help with the entry" is a middleman's service, not a government fee.