Hi Brit, I am happy to tell you my relatives in Kenya received their immigrant visa today ! Your guidance in this process has helped many of us and for that we’re forever grateful! I have made a donation to help get beautiful Sofia her tree house. Please let her know that she is a wonderful person and that she has an awesome dad !!
Thanks a lot for your guidance and constant support!
I have landed in US in August 2018 in Virginia where my relative stays and got my green card in the mail after 4 weeks. I have been traveling in and out of the country since then but didn’t stay longer than 6 months outside of it. In my last visit to Florida, I tried to issue my Social Security Number, but the officer at the Social Security Card Center in Orlando told me that I need to issue SSN from the same state that I have my address (I’m using my relative’s address in Virginia). So I wanted to ask you some questions:
1) Can I apply for SSN during my next visit to Virginia which will only last for one week and let my relative receive it in the mail as it takes 3 weeks and then he can send it to me just like I did with the green card or do I have to be physically in the US to receive SSN myself as no one else is allowed to receive it or maybe I will be requested for biometrics midway?
2) Do I really have to issue SSN from the same state I’m using the address in? As I couldn’t find that info in SSN website.
3) Can I move finally to the US August next year (i.e. in August 2020, 2 years after I got my green card) provided that I don’t stay out of the country more than 6 months during this year and not lose my green card DV lottery status? or do DV lottery winners need to reside in the country after one year from landing maximum?
4) Given that I stay in the US for 3 years starting next year, will I be able to apply for naturalization/passport in August 2023 (this will mean I have stayed 3 years in US in 5 years since I first got green card and didn’t stay outside the country more than 6 months during these 5 years)?
1. You can apply and have it sent while you are gone.
2. No – sometimes they just say things to get you to go away.
3. That is somewhat risky – your choice.
4. 5 years of residence. Coming in and out of the country means this time won’t count.
Hey Simon!
I think during the stress of this process we sometimes forget that you’re only one person who is running this blog, in your own free time and out of the kindness of your heart. That you have a full time job and family, as well. I can only imagine it is not easy doing this day in, day out for the past few years esp with how repetitive the questions end up being. And also with how silly some of us can be.
So, I thank you for your patience and dedication in helping people with the DV process, to make it less intimidating and easier to understand. I had pretty much given up on figuring out what was going on with this process early on. I would never have been as prepared as I was had I not found this blog. Thank you for helping so many of us win the chance of a lifetime to go and make a life in the US.
I want to be a filmmaker, and moving to the US has been my dream since I was a little girl. Going through the whole visa process was terrifying and every step of the way I learnt to google “britsimon” followed by my question, and then calmly move on to the next step. This year in January our green cards arrived.
Your website is an invaluable resource and I really appreciate how much time you have put into it. I hope that whatever Sofia’s dreams are she can rely on people like you to guide her, help calm her nerves and inform her decisions.
Many, many thanks. You’ve helped my dream come true.
Thank you Simon, I would have lost it by now if this blog did not exist. Will definitely donate more to the three house once I am done spending all my savings on making sure I get this green card!
Sophia, good day!
We are winners from Kazakhstan. And currently filling up ds-260 for dv2020.
And this blog is a saviour… so many thing is clear for us now.
Hope the dream comes true and we will move to the US.
From my childhood i was dreaming about how i’m gonna live there.
Here is my chance and i won’t miss it.
P.S.
Simon, thanks for the clear instructions. Keep it up, people like us need you.
last year we won this amazing lottery and just last week our visas were approved….
Even though it is a lottery and it all depends on luck, it was great having your dad’s website to prepare ourselves as good as possible for what was about to come.
If you’re waiting for a dream to come true a year can take so long, that it looks like a million years, fortunately we could always come to this site to see the progress, read stories and reload ourselves with courage from other people’s experiences.
Our wait has come to an end and another chapter can start for us, but now this wait starts for so many other people as well and I’m sure they will use this site just like we did…
Simon,
Thank you for this, for your time and patience to keep doing this…
I made a small donation as little thank you for your time, should be good to take Sofia out for ice cream 🙂
This is Inran Khan from sri Lanka. I have been trying more then ten years but still I did not get an Dv lottery, I dont know why I guess I am a unlucky person. I love USA
The average chance of being selected in the lottery is about once in 200 years. So – keep trying, and if you have not been selected in another 191 years, you can claim to be unlucky.
Hey Brit,i wanted to thank you for all the help you provided to me and all of us on this journey of dvs. i recently got my visa and i got a pending but now its alright.Am preparing my self to come to USA.i will go into Portland ,MAINE.Its such an amazing opportunity to have you to guide us although you don’t ask us any fee.,ts really amazing to have you.Now am preparing my self to come at the end of this month.I will still need your help and keep doing the good work.May God bless you
Hi brit tnx for ur help I received my visa last month and I haven’t traveled to US yet is dat any problem. have some issues I haven’t finished yet is dat some thing wrong if I travel after 3 months….
I just made a donation… very small compared with all the guidance you have provided to me and my family. We finally entered the US last week and now are waiting for the green card and the SSN to be shipped. Now we have a lot of stuff to do, of course, but at least we can try. I believe our kids will be grateful when they grow up 🙂
Hello Simon and Sofia!
Simon, I wanted to thank you for the time and effort required to keep this blog running and up to date. It’s incredible!
To Sofia, what your father has done on this blog is a truly remarkable feat. He invested probably hundreds of hours of his free time to provide tens of thousands of people each year with a single resource to help them navigate through this process. For some of them, it was an opportunity to escape war or poverty, for others it’s an opportunity to improve their careers. Either way, your father has made the process much simpler and safer for many!
As a scientist myself, I have never been particularly good at dealing with bureaucracy or legal texts. After reading the official resources I was left with more questions than answers! Having spent a single weekend reading this blog, I feel I have a far better understanding of the process.
And even more impressively, your father has done it for free… despite knowing that he could have easily earned thousands of dollars each year if he sold this as a book. Personally, I would gladly pay for it (so I made a small donation for the treehouse). And, as we all aspire to make an difference in lives of others, your father has genuinely made a huge impact on thousands of people and you should be very proud of him as it is indeed quite a rare thing!
Hi, Sophi! Your dad is a great guy! You can proud of him. He helps a lot of people who needs help in related area. Wish you to be smart and successful girl and to write a book about your Dad in future. God bless you!
Hi Sophi the little girl … The princess of your father and mother.
Lovely and we have two little boys and we are able to do everything in order for them to have a better life … We have 2 stars that illuminate our hearts every moment.Do you be proud of your beloved father..We are very grateful for the help your father gives us. God will reward you by giving you everything you want in life. And I try hard enough to help people who need me because they know that God will help in other ways my boys .. I wish to grow up a smart girl and a day to be proud veeryyyy for the family that the god has donated .. We embrace little Sophi.
Hey Sofia,
This is a very life changing opportunity for us that are selected, and meaning so much to us it creates fear of doing something wrong that will not make our dream become true. Personally speaking (even though I am using plural), I really appritiate the help that your father gives me. It makes me be more calm during this whole process and guides me through some stuff that he can understand better than me.
Hola Mr Brit
Dear Sofia your pops is a remarkable man in the lives of so many what he’s doing for people is soo great. Behind every successful man is a woman in this case you are to your pops. Keep up with the warm support kitty……Thanks so much Mr Brit am so glad u take off time to help, though am not current yet but we all believe in patience. God will surely crown your efforts..
Thank you Simon and Sofia,
Dear Sofia your dad is an awesome guy so proud of him, He helped me to get to my dreams (US)
From all the way Afghanistan ??
Once again thank you very much
Ciao Sofia,
I would like to thank you for your patience and understanding, when your dad is given vital information or answering to us he isn’t play with you, but he is teaching not only you but everyone that read this blog how to be generous, patient and selfless, (maybe the right way to happiness?)
I am sure your tree house will be ready soon and that it would be magic like the one of Jack and Annie (whose books I hope you already know, otherwise run to the public library, you will enjoy them).
Muchas gracias to your mom too.
Live long and prosper to you and your family and thank you!!!
Just made a small donation as a sign of gratitude to the awesome work you’re doing, Simon. I’m a DV2018 winner and got my visa a week ago. I’ve been silently reading your blog for the past couple of years and can state that it’s by far the best source of information for the DV lottery processes on the Internet. It saved me so much time and efforts that I really can’t thank you enough for the great work you’ve done with it.
Once again, thank you very much for everything you’ve done and continue to do for DV lottery selectees. I wish you and your family all the best, make sure you let Sofia know what a great dad she has!
Hi simon
Your are great man among the people , your great and lovely father, and you are great husband . Your unselfishness i appreciate greatly . I pray for you
Don’t worry about the treehouse “project”, your daddy is such a generous man – he will get it done for you. Just be patient just like he keeps saying to us 🙂
Time is the most precious thing, he is spending it for us for free. I feel obliged to return this favor in one way or another.
I hope there will be more nice surprises for you. Here is what I am gonna do:
My wife does amazing “handknitted Turkmen socks”, they look & feel amazing. Keeps your feet warm in the cold. And it takes days to finish one, just like your father’s work, very time consuming. About this time next year I am planning to immigrate to US. I will get it posted to you. I believe you will be around 9 by that time, I will ask my wife to make it suitable to that age group. You’ll love it !
Hi Brit I just donated something small for your blog. Keep up your good and amazing work. I don’t think I’m ever going to stop coming to your blog?
Wish you and your family all the best especially little Sophia ❤️
I just hope that some day you understanding what you father is doing for everyone of us, just trying to help people to make his dreams come true. When that happen just said thanks god for have him.
Hi Sofia,
I used this blog back in 2016 and again I want you to know that every year in May and October i remember your father and what he did to me and how helpful he is .
when i remember humanity the first person come to my mind is your father ,
we love your father and his heart and you are lucky to have him , please be sure you make him happy all the time and be proud of some when who but the happiness at people heart .
Hi Britsimon,
you teach me a lot . Thank you and god please you
I just wanted to say thank you for the brilliant resource you’ve put together. I just had my interview today and the blog has been absolutely invaluable over the last two years (!) in helping me prepare (and calming periodic bouts of totally unnecessary anxiety) at every stage of this journey. It’s incredibly generous of you to give up so much of your time and energy to provide such clear and thorough information about a process that can often feel quite opaque. Hats off to your endless patience when answering people’s questions as well! So thank you 🙂
Dear Sofia,
One of the most precious things in life is time – thank you for sharing your dad’s time with us! For so many people, emigrating to the US is a massive opportunity. It means a completely new, hopefully better life somewhere completely different – it’s both exciting and terrifying! Your dad very generously helps people through that process, providing information, help and a calming influence in what can be quite an emotional rollercoaster. It’s an incredibly generous and kind thing to do for total strangers! I’m really excited to move to the US – I hear they have the best tree houses…
DEAR PRINCESS SOPHIA,
You should be proud that you have a very generous father. He helps people from every corner of the world for free. I understand that while helping us your dad is taking some time from you, and I would like to thank you too. You have the best father in the world.
DEAR SIMON: I’m very grateful for your kindness. my visa is approved yesterday, and I can’t tell you in words how your kindness helped me to succeed. God bless you. I’m from Ethiopia.There are some visa advisers around the US embassy. You don’t know how much money they ask for a simple advice that can be tell in one statement, but you provide us this all quality advises for free. Your tremendous help and generosity should be appreciated. Thank you very much once again.
God bless you and your little princess Sophia.
TO SOPHIA: You are one lucky girl. Rare are the people who dedicate their own time to help others, even rarer are those who do it out the kindness of their hearts to help complete strangers. Not only does your dad helps us, but he guides us through this amazing process by sharing his experience and knowledge with us. You have no o idea the impact your amazing father has had on thousands of lives. I religiously read his posts and every day i come here and educate myself of this. After years of trying, I finally was selected and with your father’s help, when the day comes, I’ll be ready! If he does so much for us, I can only imagine what he’ll do for the most precious person in his life. May our donations make your dream come true, just like your father’s work made ours a reality! Cheers to you both.
TO SIMON: YOU ARE A TRUE INSPIRATION. I admire your patience and kindness, to be dedicating so much time and energy on strangers is admirable. Truly thank you. You seem to never lose your cool and find the strength to reply to all, even when the questions have been asked time and time again. I salute you. Many of us owe you, big time! you’re the real MVP!!!
Thank you for your help and support, your blog helps us in every aspect of the green card journey, I want to make a contribution to help this site stay ongoing but Paypal is not available in Turkey. I dont know if any other countries are experiencing the same but just let us know if any other way to donate is possible.
Hello Britsimon, hello Sophia,
I’m not a very good speaker or poetaster like some of the people above but I want to thank both of you in a few simple words. First of all thank you Brit for your knowledge you share with people like me, for your patience and your ceaseless help and hints. Thank you for your precious time you share with peaople all around world. Your job and your commitment here is remarkable and thank you for this on behalf of me and thousands other people.
Few words for you, Sophia…
You really should be proud of your father. If you look at the globe, there is no continent (well, not sure about Antartica 🙂 ) where people haven’t asked your father for help and advice. Every year millions of people from Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, both Americas dream about moving to USA. Thousands of them got chosen and thousands of them need help. Thousands of them ask your father for this help and many of them are succesful thanks to your father. Your father makes that many people’s dreams come true 🙂 A silent Hero for the people all over the WORLD! Be proud of him, you have wonderful father, And remember to give him your support every day with strong hug and simple “love you daddy, I’m proud of you”. Remember, he is very important to many people all around the world, but for him you are the most important person in his life – see how important are you? 🙂
Wish you both and your family all the best. May your house be always full of good health and happiness.
Thank you Carlos for your kind words and your own generosity!
You are correct about the worldwide coverage! WordPress lists the visitors to the site by country. According to WordPress, the site has had visitors from every country/region in the world EXCEPT Greenland, Svalbard (part of Norway), and Western Sahara. They actually don’t mention or show Antarctica. So yeah – I am pretty sure the site has helped people all over the world. 🙂
Thank for all the information on this site Simon! Thanks for caring and helping people all over the world make this journey which can be quite intimidating sometimes. Kudos to you!
Hey Sophia, how are you? I hope you are doing well 🙂
Do you want to hear a secret? If yes, close your daddy’s eyes and read this on yourself. I am sure you have watched many superhero movies, where they just help people without their family knowing it. So you might want to watch out for your daddy, he might just be one of them 😉
He has helped thousands of people around the world, but hey it’s only between you and me ;). Now open your dad’s eyes and read the remaining of this message.
Tell your dad he is awesome 😉
Dear princess sofia
I really appreciate what your father doing to his friends around world, you have no idea about that benefits come to DV winer over world form your father when he advising,,wish you all the best & hope you will be on father way for charity work.thank you
Hello Dear
I Have Was selected for in the diversity immigrant visa program.for the fiscal year 2018(oct,1,17.to.sep,30,18)and then submited form(DS260). But don not have any received email from organization (kentuky Consular Center).
Please Help Me…
Thank You.
Hello Sofia! Hello BritSimon! We are here to express our graitude to your father for his helpful instructions and wonderful web-site and work he is doing. We’ve just got our visas and hope to fly in a couple of months to sunny California! We are from Ukraine and there is a cold winter now in Ukraine, so that we will travel from cold weather to warm and sunny. We will travel with our little daughter and her name is also Sofia )
Dear Sofia,
we wish all the hapiness to you and your family and the best tree house in the world!
Hi Britt, Thank you for the efforts you are doing for every one, I am last year DV winner and now in USA , having sound job and life is running really good with family and kids,,,,, would like to say thank again and will be adding my contribution as well…. hope you dont mind small amount 😉
Thank you for coming back to say hello. I am sure people would love to read about your progress after you have been there a few months. Was it easy to find a job, or a place to live? What are the differences between your old country that you notice. People would be very interested to read that if you get a few minutes.
Hi Sofia ?
At first I would like to tell you that you have a great father who loves you so much.
He spends much time to help thousands of people for nothing. And, the world would be better if there were many people like your father. You have to be proud of him and you are his Queen so let him to be proud of you as well.
Brit, I would like to thank you personally and please do stop what are you doing what ever happen.
We are all appreciate your help, patience and fast response
Thanks a lot and wish you and your daughter always the best.
Dear Sofia,
I have a seven year old daughter like you. We recently came to America because we won the Green card lottery. We would not have made if it was not for your Daddy’s work. I was completely lost till I came across your Daddy’s work on the internet. It has been a blessing to our family. I have two other children aged 9 and 4. They love America so much and am sure if they knew you, they would love to play with you and enjoy sleepovers.
Please know that because of your dad’s good work, you and your family are going to be blessed forever.
May God bless your family and give you a bright future.
We have just read your dad’s post with my partner, who lives in Houston. I live in London. (originally from Hungary) difficult story: we met a year ago in London. We did not plan like that, but we have been still dating (almost a year now). It is like a modern fairy tale. Do you believe in fairy tales? I would love to hear your opinion about them. We found your dad’s blog, because I am applying again for the green card lottery so maybe we can live together.
Nowadays people love to say that they would like to make an impact. Your dad chose to create something amazing here. He is helping people with soooo many different stories and also make them laugh (we laughed at his comments:)). He teaches you some fantastic lessons about caring, sharing, compassion, passion and hope. And most importantly he brings people together from different backgrounds. And that is what the World needs today.
Thank you for his amazing work and sacrifice.
Have a magical day little girl!
Simply saying your father is a amazing, wonderful man, who helps others without expecting nothing. People like your father makes this world a very beautiful place. I just cant imagine how much he cares and loves you, if he cares to help people like us for nothing.
I will definitely help you for the tree house 🙂 to make it the most beautiful tree house in the world. When its done ask your father to post a photo in his web site.
Brit, Thank you very much for the quick responses you give. It just eases the stress in your mind with all these complications about this DV process :D. Thank you again.
What a beautiful name you have !
It’s sounds like a princess name 😉
I am Jordane, and I come from France ! I am sure you know where is France, it’s not very far away from Great Bretagne 🙂
Sofia, could you please help me to convey a very important message to your father please ?
I really want to thank him for his help and his answers to all my questions on his blog. It helps me a lot with my visa adventure for the USA !
I just obtained my visa and now I am planing a new adventure in Florida where I studied during 5 months ! I can’t wait to go back to Disney world ! Have you ever been there ? Maybe Disney land in California ?
So please, say thank you to your father ! He is a very generous man and I am sure he is a fantastic daddy !!
I hope he is building you a lovely treehouse ! My father did the same for me when I was a little girl (I am 27 now), he build me a little tree house with purple window!!
So, what I suggest now is either doing a donation or send you French candy or French chocolate by post ! It’s up to you ?
Brit, from the bottom of my heart thank you so much…. you are doing an amazing and useful work with this blog !
Ps : I love your sense of humour 😉
I wish you the best Sofia, and to your family too !
September 4, 2019 at 14:09
Hi Brit, I am happy to tell you my relatives in Kenya received their immigrant visa today ! Your guidance in this process has helped many of us and for that we’re forever grateful! I have made a donation to help get beautiful Sofia her tree house. Please let her know that she is a wonderful person and that she has an awesome dad !!
September 4, 2019 at 22:38
Thank you Faadi for letting me know and the donation. Best of luck to your relatives.
July 11, 2019 at 11:07
Hi Simon,
Thanks a lot for your guidance and constant support!
I have landed in US in August 2018 in Virginia where my relative stays and got my green card in the mail after 4 weeks. I have been traveling in and out of the country since then but didn’t stay longer than 6 months outside of it. In my last visit to Florida, I tried to issue my Social Security Number, but the officer at the Social Security Card Center in Orlando told me that I need to issue SSN from the same state that I have my address (I’m using my relative’s address in Virginia). So I wanted to ask you some questions:
1) Can I apply for SSN during my next visit to Virginia which will only last for one week and let my relative receive it in the mail as it takes 3 weeks and then he can send it to me just like I did with the green card or do I have to be physically in the US to receive SSN myself as no one else is allowed to receive it or maybe I will be requested for biometrics midway?
2) Do I really have to issue SSN from the same state I’m using the address in? As I couldn’t find that info in SSN website.
3) Can I move finally to the US August next year (i.e. in August 2020, 2 years after I got my green card) provided that I don’t stay out of the country more than 6 months during this year and not lose my green card DV lottery status? or do DV lottery winners need to reside in the country after one year from landing maximum?
4) Given that I stay in the US for 3 years starting next year, will I be able to apply for naturalization/passport in August 2023 (this will mean I have stayed 3 years in US in 5 years since I first got green card and didn’t stay outside the country more than 6 months during these 5 years)?
Your help is really appreciated! Thanks again
July 12, 2019 at 05:41
1. You can apply and have it sent while you are gone.
2. No – sometimes they just say things to get you to go away.
3. That is somewhat risky – your choice.
4. 5 years of residence. Coming in and out of the country means this time won’t count.
July 5, 2019 at 18:33
Hey Simon!
I think during the stress of this process we sometimes forget that you’re only one person who is running this blog, in your own free time and out of the kindness of your heart. That you have a full time job and family, as well. I can only imagine it is not easy doing this day in, day out for the past few years esp with how repetitive the questions end up being. And also with how silly some of us can be.
So, I thank you for your patience and dedication in helping people with the DV process, to make it less intimidating and easier to understand. I had pretty much given up on figuring out what was going on with this process early on. I would never have been as prepared as I was had I not found this blog. Thank you for helping so many of us win the chance of a lifetime to go and make a life in the US.
Much gratitude to you and your family.
July 6, 2019 at 03:47
Thanks Anna.
June 5, 2019 at 02:09
Hi Simon!
I want to be a filmmaker, and moving to the US has been my dream since I was a little girl. Going through the whole visa process was terrifying and every step of the way I learnt to google “britsimon” followed by my question, and then calmly move on to the next step. This year in January our green cards arrived.
Your website is an invaluable resource and I really appreciate how much time you have put into it. I hope that whatever Sofia’s dreams are she can rely on people like you to guide her, help calm her nerves and inform her decisions.
Many, many thanks. You’ve helped my dream come true.
Jamie
June 5, 2019 at 05:31
Thank you for the kind words Jamie, best of luck in the USA following your dream.
If you want to cast a grumpy old guy for one of your movies, call me.
May 17, 2019 at 04:12
Thank you Simon, I would have lost it by now if this blog did not exist. Will definitely donate more to the three house once I am done spending all my savings on making sure I get this green card!
May 17, 2019 at 05:22
Sounds like you are doing well with your studies!
May 16, 2019 at 09:18
Sophia, good day!
We are winners from Kazakhstan. And currently filling up ds-260 for dv2020.
And this blog is a saviour… so many thing is clear for us now.
Hope the dream comes true and we will move to the US.
From my childhood i was dreaming about how i’m gonna live there.
Here is my chance and i won’t miss it.
P.S.
Simon, thanks for the clear instructions. Keep it up, people like us need you.
May 16, 2019 at 16:33
🙂
May 10, 2019 at 09:39
Hi Sofia,
last year we won this amazing lottery and just last week our visas were approved….
Even though it is a lottery and it all depends on luck, it was great having your dad’s website to prepare ourselves as good as possible for what was about to come.
If you’re waiting for a dream to come true a year can take so long, that it looks like a million years, fortunately we could always come to this site to see the progress, read stories and reload ourselves with courage from other people’s experiences.
Our wait has come to an end and another chapter can start for us, but now this wait starts for so many other people as well and I’m sure they will use this site just like we did…
Simon,
Thank you for this, for your time and patience to keep doing this…
I made a small donation as little thank you for your time, should be good to take Sofia out for ice cream 🙂
Axel & Elise
May 10, 2019 at 21:46
Thank you for the note Axel and Elise. And thanks for the donation. I will take her for ice cream as you suggest and read her your note!
May 7, 2019 at 08:41
Dear sir ,
This is Inran Khan from sri Lanka. I have been trying more then ten years but still I did not get an Dv lottery, I dont know why I guess I am a unlucky person. I love USA
May 7, 2019 at 10:11
The average chance of being selected in the lottery is about once in 200 years. So – keep trying, and if you have not been selected in another 191 years, you can claim to be unlucky.
May 2, 2019 at 18:46
Hey Brit,i wanted to thank you for all the help you provided to me and all of us on this journey of dvs. i recently got my visa and i got a pending but now its alright.Am preparing my self to come to USA.i will go into Portland ,MAINE.Its such an amazing opportunity to have you to guide us although you don’t ask us any fee.,ts really amazing to have you.Now am preparing my self to come at the end of this month.I will still need your help and keep doing the good work.May God bless you
May 2, 2019 at 18:50
Best of luck.
April 30, 2019 at 02:57
Hi brit tnx for ur help I received my visa last month and I haven’t traveled to US yet is dat any problem. have some issues I haven’t finished yet is dat some thing wrong if I travel after 3 months….
April 30, 2019 at 03:05
As long as you enter before the expiry date on your visa.
February 25, 2019 at 16:26
I just made a donation… very small compared with all the guidance you have provided to me and my family. We finally entered the US last week and now are waiting for the green card and the SSN to be shipped. Now we have a lot of stuff to do, of course, but at least we can try. I believe our kids will be grateful when they grow up 🙂
Thanks, Brit.
February 25, 2019 at 21:35
Best of luck with your “immigrant story”.
February 20, 2019 at 13:59
Hello Simon and Sofia!
Simon, I wanted to thank you for the time and effort required to keep this blog running and up to date. It’s incredible!
To Sofia, what your father has done on this blog is a truly remarkable feat. He invested probably hundreds of hours of his free time to provide tens of thousands of people each year with a single resource to help them navigate through this process. For some of them, it was an opportunity to escape war or poverty, for others it’s an opportunity to improve their careers. Either way, your father has made the process much simpler and safer for many!
As a scientist myself, I have never been particularly good at dealing with bureaucracy or legal texts. After reading the official resources I was left with more questions than answers! Having spent a single weekend reading this blog, I feel I have a far better understanding of the process.
And even more impressively, your father has done it for free… despite knowing that he could have easily earned thousands of dollars each year if he sold this as a book. Personally, I would gladly pay for it (so I made a small donation for the treehouse). And, as we all aspire to make an difference in lives of others, your father has genuinely made a huge impact on thousands of people and you should be very proud of him as it is indeed quite a rare thing!
Greetings from southern Europe!
February 20, 2019 at 14:21
Thank you!
February 6, 2019 at 22:58
Hi, Sophi! Your dad is a great guy! You can proud of him. He helps a lot of people who needs help in related area. Wish you to be smart and successful girl and to write a book about your Dad in future. God bless you!
February 6, 2019 at 10:30
Sophi you should be proud of your daddy. He is helping many people from all over the world who needs his help, Just for FREE
February 6, 2019 at 08:57
Hi Sophi the little girl … The princess of your father and mother.
Lovely and we have two little boys and we are able to do everything in order for them to have a better life … We have 2 stars that illuminate our hearts every moment.Do you be proud of your beloved father..We are very grateful for the help your father gives us. God will reward you by giving you everything you want in life. And I try hard enough to help people who need me because they know that God will help in other ways my boys .. I wish to grow up a smart girl and a day to be proud veeryyyy for the family that the god has donated .. We embrace little Sophi.
January 26, 2019 at 18:21
Hey Sofia,
This is a very life changing opportunity for us that are selected, and meaning so much to us it creates fear of doing something wrong that will not make our dream become true. Personally speaking (even though I am using plural), I really appritiate the help that your father gives me. It makes me be more calm during this whole process and guides me through some stuff that he can understand better than me.
January 18, 2019 at 11:03
Hola Mr Brit
Dear Sofia your pops is a remarkable man in the lives of so many what he’s doing for people is soo great. Behind every successful man is a woman in this case you are to your pops. Keep up with the warm support kitty……Thanks so much Mr Brit am so glad u take off time to help, though am not current yet but we all believe in patience. God will surely crown your efforts..
January 18, 2019 at 15:02
🙂
December 6, 2018 at 05:24
Thank you Simon and Sofia,
Dear Sofia your dad is an awesome guy so proud of him, He helped me to get to my dreams (US)
From all the way Afghanistan ??
Once again thank you very much
December 6, 2018 at 06:09
Congratulations!
October 20, 2018 at 18:13
Ciao Sofia,
I would like to thank you for your patience and understanding, when your dad is given vital information or answering to us he isn’t play with you, but he is teaching not only you but everyone that read this blog how to be generous, patient and selfless, (maybe the right way to happiness?)
I am sure your tree house will be ready soon and that it would be magic like the one of Jack and Annie (whose books I hope you already know, otherwise run to the public library, you will enjoy them).
Muchas gracias to your mom too.
Live long and prosper to you and your family and thank you!!!
October 20, 2018 at 19:21
Thanks for the kind words!
October 2, 2018 at 11:48
Just made a small donation as a sign of gratitude to the awesome work you’re doing, Simon. I’m a DV2018 winner and got my visa a week ago. I’ve been silently reading your blog for the past couple of years and can state that it’s by far the best source of information for the DV lottery processes on the Internet. It saved me so much time and efforts that I really can’t thank you enough for the great work you’ve done with it.
Once again, thank you very much for everything you’ve done and continue to do for DV lottery selectees. I wish you and your family all the best, make sure you let Sofia know what a great dad she has!
October 2, 2018 at 14:10
Thank you very much. I’m glad you found the site helpful! Best of luck!
September 29, 2018 at 16:05
Hi Simon,
I was really lost with all this situation around adoption, thank you so much for clearing this up for me.
Also, thank you for taking time to help so many people and for your amazing blog.
All the best with your new house project.
Cheers
George
July 27, 2018 at 12:36
Hi simon
Your are great man among the people , your great and lovely father, and you are great husband . Your unselfishness i appreciate greatly . I pray for you
July 23, 2018 at 13:43
Thanks BritSimon – made a small donation to recognize your efforts and the benefits it is making.
July 23, 2018 at 17:03
Thank you.
July 13, 2018 at 10:32
Hello Sofia,
Don’t worry about the treehouse “project”, your daddy is such a generous man – he will get it done for you. Just be patient just like he keeps saying to us 🙂
Time is the most precious thing, he is spending it for us for free. I feel obliged to return this favor in one way or another.
I hope there will be more nice surprises for you. Here is what I am gonna do:
My wife does amazing “handknitted Turkmen socks”, they look & feel amazing. Keeps your feet warm in the cold. And it takes days to finish one, just like your father’s work, very time consuming. About this time next year I am planning to immigrate to US. I will get it posted to you. I believe you will be around 9 by that time, I will ask my wife to make it suitable to that age group. You’ll love it !
God bless you and your family,
Kemal
June 23, 2018 at 14:52
Hi Brit I just donated something small for your blog. Keep up your good and amazing work. I don’t think I’m ever going to stop coming to your blog?
Wish you and your family all the best especially little Sophia ❤️
June 23, 2018 at 15:17
Thank you Tom!
June 23, 2018 at 15:25
You are more than welcome!!!!
June 7, 2018 at 01:58
Hi Sofia,
I just hope that some day you understanding what you father is doing for everyone of us, just trying to help people to make his dreams come true. When that happen just said thanks god for have him.
Sincerely,
rm
June 7, 2018 at 03:23
Thank you Richard!
May 27, 2018 at 09:08
Hi Sofia,
I used this blog back in 2016 and again I want you to know that every year in May and October i remember your father and what he did to me and how helpful he is .
when i remember humanity the first person come to my mind is your father ,
we love your father and his heart and you are lucky to have him , please be sure you make him happy all the time and be proud of some when who but the happiness at people heart .
Hi Britsimon,
you teach me a lot . Thank you and god please you
May 27, 2018 at 14:30
Thank you for your kind words!!
April 4, 2018 at 20:33
Hi Simon,
I just wanted to say thank you for the brilliant resource you’ve put together. I just had my interview today and the blog has been absolutely invaluable over the last two years (!) in helping me prepare (and calming periodic bouts of totally unnecessary anxiety) at every stage of this journey. It’s incredibly generous of you to give up so much of your time and energy to provide such clear and thorough information about a process that can often feel quite opaque. Hats off to your endless patience when answering people’s questions as well! So thank you 🙂
Dear Sofia,
One of the most precious things in life is time – thank you for sharing your dad’s time with us! For so many people, emigrating to the US is a massive opportunity. It means a completely new, hopefully better life somewhere completely different – it’s both exciting and terrifying! Your dad very generously helps people through that process, providing information, help and a calming influence in what can be quite an emotional rollercoaster. It’s an incredibly generous and kind thing to do for total strangers! I’m really excited to move to the US – I hear they have the best tree houses…
Take care!
April 4, 2018 at 21:26
Congratulations and thanks for the kind words.
April 3, 2018 at 13:55
DEAR PRINCESS SOPHIA,
You should be proud that you have a very generous father. He helps people from every corner of the world for free. I understand that while helping us your dad is taking some time from you, and I would like to thank you too. You have the best father in the world.
DEAR SIMON: I’m very grateful for your kindness. my visa is approved yesterday, and I can’t tell you in words how your kindness helped me to succeed. God bless you. I’m from Ethiopia.There are some visa advisers around the US embassy. You don’t know how much money they ask for a simple advice that can be tell in one statement, but you provide us this all quality advises for free. Your tremendous help and generosity should be appreciated. Thank you very much once again.
God bless you and your little princess Sophia.
April 3, 2018 at 14:10
I’m very glad to have helped. Good luck in the USA.
March 29, 2018 at 14:54
TO SOPHIA: You are one lucky girl. Rare are the people who dedicate their own time to help others, even rarer are those who do it out the kindness of their hearts to help complete strangers. Not only does your dad helps us, but he guides us through this amazing process by sharing his experience and knowledge with us. You have no o idea the impact your amazing father has had on thousands of lives. I religiously read his posts and every day i come here and educate myself of this. After years of trying, I finally was selected and with your father’s help, when the day comes, I’ll be ready! If he does so much for us, I can only imagine what he’ll do for the most precious person in his life. May our donations make your dream come true, just like your father’s work made ours a reality! Cheers to you both.
TO SIMON: YOU ARE A TRUE INSPIRATION. I admire your patience and kindness, to be dedicating so much time and energy on strangers is admirable. Truly thank you. You seem to never lose your cool and find the strength to reply to all, even when the questions have been asked time and time again. I salute you. Many of us owe you, big time! you’re the real MVP!!!
March 29, 2018 at 15:48
Thanks for such a lovely message!
P.S. You give me too much credit about never losing my cool! 😉
April 3, 2018 at 14:14
+1
March 18, 2018 at 12:16
Hello Brit,
Thank you for your help and support, your blog helps us in every aspect of the green card journey, I want to make a contribution to help this site stay ongoing but Paypal is not available in Turkey. I dont know if any other countries are experiencing the same but just let us know if any other way to donate is possible.
March 18, 2018 at 15:41
Than ks for the thought. Wait until you are in the USA! 🙂
March 18, 2018 at 15:42
i think burak is a 38 eu number…
March 18, 2018 at 16:24
Nope.13xxx I’m not a member of the the high EU CN gang.
Good luck with the VB pace Rxy, I hope that it will start to increase faster and you get your visa too.
March 18, 2018 at 16:27
🙂 see you 3-4 months later then, thanks again for everything.
March 10, 2018 at 00:27
Hello Britsimon, hello Sophia,
I’m not a very good speaker or poetaster like some of the people above but I want to thank both of you in a few simple words. First of all thank you Brit for your knowledge you share with people like me, for your patience and your ceaseless help and hints. Thank you for your precious time you share with peaople all around world. Your job and your commitment here is remarkable and thank you for this on behalf of me and thousands other people.
Few words for you, Sophia…
You really should be proud of your father. If you look at the globe, there is no continent (well, not sure about Antartica 🙂 ) where people haven’t asked your father for help and advice. Every year millions of people from Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, both Americas dream about moving to USA. Thousands of them got chosen and thousands of them need help. Thousands of them ask your father for this help and many of them are succesful thanks to your father. Your father makes that many people’s dreams come true 🙂 A silent Hero for the people all over the WORLD! Be proud of him, you have wonderful father, And remember to give him your support every day with strong hug and simple “love you daddy, I’m proud of you”. Remember, he is very important to many people all around the world, but for him you are the most important person in his life – see how important are you? 🙂
Wish you both and your family all the best. May your house be always full of good health and happiness.
Greetings from Poland
March 10, 2018 at 00:50
Thank you Carlos for your kind words and your own generosity!
You are correct about the worldwide coverage! WordPress lists the visitors to the site by country. According to WordPress, the site has had visitors from every country/region in the world EXCEPT Greenland, Svalbard (part of Norway), and Western Sahara. They actually don’t mention or show Antarctica. So yeah – I am pretty sure the site has helped people all over the world. 🙂
March 10, 2018 at 00:52
It’s not the site that helps – it’s you 🙂
February 14, 2018 at 10:11
Do you have account for cryptocurrency? ^^
February 14, 2018 at 17:57
No – I probably should come up to date with that – huh? Which system/wallet would you recommend?
February 14, 2018 at 18:14
Any us based and big cryptocurrency exchange is fine. You can receive crypto currency on your wallet promptly:)
January 31, 2018 at 14:36
Hey there,
What about this book on Amazon? 🙂
Would love to buy it.
January 16, 2018 at 14:58
Thank for all the information on this site Simon! Thanks for caring and helping people all over the world make this journey which can be quite intimidating sometimes. Kudos to you!
January 14, 2018 at 19:45
Hey Sophia, how are you? I hope you are doing well 🙂
Do you want to hear a secret? If yes, close your daddy’s eyes and read this on yourself. I am sure you have watched many superhero movies, where they just help people without their family knowing it. So you might want to watch out for your daddy, he might just be one of them 😉
He has helped thousands of people around the world, but hey it’s only between you and me ;). Now open your dad’s eyes and read the remaining of this message.
Tell your dad he is awesome 😉
January 15, 2018 at 06:01
LOLOLOL! Thanks!
January 7, 2018 at 16:54
Dear princess sofia
I really appreciate what your father doing to his friends around world, you have no idea about that benefits come to DV winer over world form your father when he advising,,wish you all the best & hope you will be on father way for charity work.thank you
January 7, 2018 at 16:58
Thank you for those kind words!
December 25, 2017 at 15:30
When the sun is up
And the cloud is gone
Brittsimon will always answer for you
When the day is gone
And the moon is on
There is Sofia that livin a live for you
As much as the word were lose, there will always be a father that taking Sofia into the deepest love
Thank you Simon, for assisting us till now, God bless You abundantly, which shown on how beautiful Sofia must be
A very merry Christmas for you and family
Best
Nis
December 27, 2017 at 01:21
🙂
December 24, 2017 at 15:17
Hello Dear
I Have Was selected for in the diversity immigrant visa program.for the fiscal year 2018(oct,1,17.to.sep,30,18)and then submited form(DS260). But don not have any received email from organization (kentuky Consular Center).
Please Help Me…
Thank You.
December 24, 2017 at 16:27
What is your case number?
December 20, 2017 at 19:26
Hello Sofia! Hello BritSimon! We are here to express our graitude to your father for his helpful instructions and wonderful web-site and work he is doing. We’ve just got our visas and hope to fly in a couple of months to sunny California! We are from Ukraine and there is a cold winter now in Ukraine, so that we will travel from cold weather to warm and sunny. We will travel with our little daughter and her name is also Sofia )
Dear Sofia,
we wish all the hapiness to you and your family and the best tree house in the world!
December 20, 2017 at 19:34
Congratulations on the visa and thank you for the message. California could use another Sofia!!
December 15, 2017 at 07:18
Hi Britt, Thank you for the efforts you are doing for every one, I am last year DV winner and now in USA , having sound job and life is running really good with family and kids,,,,, would like to say thank again and will be adding my contribution as well…. hope you dont mind small amount 😉
December 15, 2017 at 15:26
Thank you for coming back to say hello. I am sure people would love to read about your progress after you have been there a few months. Was it easy to find a job, or a place to live? What are the differences between your old country that you notice. People would be very interested to read that if you get a few minutes.
November 20, 2017 at 11:09
Hi Brit, Thanks very much for your wonderful blog.
With best wishes to you and your daughter! :):):)
November 15, 2017 at 09:28
Hi Brit,
I WILL LIKE TO SAY A BIG THANK YOU FOR THE GOOD WORK YOU ARE DOING MAY GOD REWARD YOUR MORE AND MORE.
November 15, 2017 at 08:04
God bless Sofia n Brit
November 5, 2017 at 06:47
He’s very amazing person , You’re very kind your answers are very helpful and accurate.May God bless You more..
October 26, 2017 at 19:32
Hi Sofia ?
At first I would like to tell you that you have a great father who loves you so much.
He spends much time to help thousands of people for nothing. And, the world would be better if there were many people like your father. You have to be proud of him and you are his Queen so let him to be proud of you as well.
Brit, I would like to thank you personally and please do stop what are you doing what ever happen.
We are all appreciate your help, patience and fast response
Thanks a lot and wish you and your daughter always the best.
October 26, 2017 at 21:45
Thank you very much for the words of support!
October 26, 2017 at 18:31
Dear Sofia,
I have a seven year old daughter like you. We recently came to America because we won the Green card lottery. We would not have made if it was not for your Daddy’s work. I was completely lost till I came across your Daddy’s work on the internet. It has been a blessing to our family. I have two other children aged 9 and 4. They love America so much and am sure if they knew you, they would love to play with you and enjoy sleepovers.
Please know that because of your dad’s good work, you and your family are going to be blessed forever.
May God bless your family and give you a bright future.
Lots of love from me and my family
Dan
October 26, 2017 at 21:46
Haha – Sofia will love this message – she LOVES sleepovers!!!
Thank you!
October 12, 2017 at 20:51
Hello Sofia and Hello BritSimon!
Dear Sofia,
We have just read your dad’s post with my partner, who lives in Houston. I live in London. (originally from Hungary) difficult story: we met a year ago in London. We did not plan like that, but we have been still dating (almost a year now). It is like a modern fairy tale. Do you believe in fairy tales? I would love to hear your opinion about them. We found your dad’s blog, because I am applying again for the green card lottery so maybe we can live together.
Nowadays people love to say that they would like to make an impact. Your dad chose to create something amazing here. He is helping people with soooo many different stories and also make them laugh (we laughed at his comments:)). He teaches you some fantastic lessons about caring, sharing, compassion, passion and hope. And most importantly he brings people together from different backgrounds. And that is what the World needs today.
Thank you for his amazing work and sacrifice.
Have a magical day little girl!
Hugs and greetings from the home of Harry Potter.
October 12, 2017 at 22:35
That’s a lovely message. Thank you very much! I will read it with her tonight.
October 12, 2017 at 12:13
Hey Sophia,
Simply saying your father is a amazing, wonderful man, who helps others without expecting nothing. People like your father makes this world a very beautiful place. I just cant imagine how much he cares and loves you, if he cares to help people like us for nothing.
I will definitely help you for the tree house 🙂 to make it the most beautiful tree house in the world. When its done ask your father to post a photo in his web site.
Brit, Thank you very much for the quick responses you give. It just eases the stress in your mind with all these complications about this DV process :D. Thank you again.
October 12, 2017 at 13:45
Thank you!
October 10, 2017 at 14:25
Hi Sweet Little Sofia !
What a beautiful name you have !
It’s sounds like a princess name 😉
I am Jordane, and I come from France ! I am sure you know where is France, it’s not very far away from Great Bretagne 🙂
Sofia, could you please help me to convey a very important message to your father please ?
I really want to thank him for his help and his answers to all my questions on his blog. It helps me a lot with my visa adventure for the USA !
I just obtained my visa and now I am planing a new adventure in Florida where I studied during 5 months ! I can’t wait to go back to Disney world ! Have you ever been there ? Maybe Disney land in California ?
So please, say thank you to your father ! He is a very generous man and I am sure he is a fantastic daddy !!
I hope he is building you a lovely treehouse ! My father did the same for me when I was a little girl (I am 27 now), he build me a little tree house with purple window!!
So, what I suggest now is either doing a donation or send you French candy or French chocolate by post ! It’s up to you ?
Brit, from the bottom of my heart thank you so much…. you are doing an amazing and useful work with this blog !
Ps : I love your sense of humour 😉
I wish you the best Sofia, and to your family too !
Jordane form France ??
October 10, 2017 at 19:29
Thank you Jordane – she will read this tonight – she’ll love it!
November 9, 2017 at 12:41
Thank you very much for all this time spent on your website.
Your blog is a true guideline for our green card lottery experience!