Kristi Noem announces “pause” of the DV lottery program

1.Can we go ahead and still apply our Ds260
2. As a Ghanaian(not ban) , can I still transfer my case to a ban country”s embassy like Cotedivoire and co

I’m wondering if anyone has recieved 2NL’s after the pause. As I understand, Consular Processing cases are proceeding as normal so would this mean 2NL’s will continue to be sent out?

Has anyone wen’t for interview after the “pause” announcement and been issued a visa successfuly?

what’s done is done so movin on to what may be ahead of us as the next step; if I am not mistaken you’ve told in your session that Visa Bulletins will continue to be declared each month since immigration does not only mean DV solely but will they still declare cutoff numbers for each month? it did not make sense to me since they’ll not proceed any interviews due to suspension. will they continue announcing cutoff numbers like nothin happened and increase them based on their agenda(quota) for this year or may it affect or even pause the increasing cutoff numbers? On the other hand let’s assume suspension is over in June (after 5-6 months) since (assumably) they will not have paused but incremented cutoff numbers from 11k to let’s say 19k but they won’t be able to proceed all applications from Jan to June either and still, all of a sudden, will they be accepting accumulated interviews all at once? Like even when ignoring the gaps around 8k number (lets assume 4-5k applicants are within 11k to 19k)? Is it realistic? Just wondered how did they manage it on dv2020 and how will they possibly manage it this year?

Don’t know if you saw this on the immigration.com site – but looks like there’s official guidance from USCIS – and it only affects AoS

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/memos/PM-602-0193-DiversityVisaHolds-20251219.pdf

We have been approved for our DV1 green cards and are booked to activate on January 8th (waited until after Christmas/New Year). Are we still okay to travel and should we be trying to make this trip earlier?

Hello Mr. Britsimons, my wife and I received our DV 2026 visa a week ago. I would like to know if we are affected by this decision and if we will receive our green card once we arrive in the United States.

1️⃣ The sentence and its meaning

“At President Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS to pause the DV1 program…”

This is a political and administrative announcement from USCIS/DHS.

The stated goal: “to protect Americans from this disastrous program,” according to the statement.

USCIS is being asked to pause certain internal processes, especially for those inside the United States or applying for Adjustment of Status.

2️⃣ Who legally manages the DV lottery (DV‑2027)

The DV program is entirely under the Department of State (DOS), not USCIS.

KCC (Kentucky Consular Center) manages:

The random selection

Sending notifications

Receiving DS‑260 forms

Scheduling consular interviews

USCIS does not have legal authority to cancel the lottery or prevent its opening for applicants outside the United States.

3️⃣ Does the USCIS pause affect DV‑2027?

If you are outside the United States:

The USCIS pause does not block your selection

It does not prevent the registration portal from opening or the random selection

It does not prevent embassies from conducting interviews

USCIS may only affect:

Cases inside the United States (Adjustment of Status)

Certain internal administrative processing

4️⃣ Conclusion

✅ The opening of DV‑2027 depends on the Department of State
✅ The USCIS pause has no practical effect on registration or the lottery for applicants outside the U.S.
❌ The lottery can only be canceled if Congress passes a law to terminate the program, which is very rare.

Please, tell us that Curtis is planning to do something and DV2026 still has hope.

This is so unbelievably bad news! We can only hope for a temporary hold or something. I really hope any legislation to terminate this program will not pass congress.

My number goes current last month , currently waiting for 2NL, it’s such a shocking news…..