Morning all – I slept well last night and took a long walk on the beach. I hope you all are rested too. I took Curtis’ advice and I have been breathing and drinking water. 🙂 I suggest you all do the same. This has been a stressful time and I can see some of you are wound up like watch springs. So first. Breathe. Relax. Take a moment, take a walk.
Sometimes we need to win a war in small battles. That is what happened last night, we won an important battle, but the war is not over, and not everyone will make it. Make sure you understand that for a start. The goal was always to get as many people as possible through, but we have always assumed we wouldn’t get everything we wanted.
As I mentioned last night, I am thrilled that we made some progress and got an order to keeps hope alive. However, exactly how that will work is not clear yet, and I am concerned that you will all take little pieces of info, mix it all up, and make up 20,000 different versions of the truth. I am not in a position to give perfect clarity yet. Nor are the lawyers. They need time to interpret the order, they will be speaking to the government lawyers and the government will also be deciding how to implement the order. I think it will take several days to know where we stand. So – be ready for that delay and please allow us the time to respond accurately. So – if I direct you to this post, that is what I mean – WAIT! PLEASE!
For those that got visas issued prior to the Fiscal year deadline, firstly, many congratulations. You all worked hard, you pushed, you scrambled to make it to appointments and I have seen some incredible stories of struggles, and people helping and supporting each other. It fills my heart. For those that have been issued there are many questions. The embassies have caused much confusion with various formats of annotations on the visas. These visas sometimes mention an exception to a proclamation, but it is not clear whether the issuance of the visa itself was the exception (but the visa holder is still subject to the proclamation) OR whether that means the visa holder is exempted from the proclamation. That will need to be clarified – but I can say this.
The immigration ban remains in force until December 31. The only cases which are supposed to be exempt from the ban (i.e. could enter prior to the Dec 31 date) are those people who had visas prior to April 23, and recently got a re-issuance of that visa. That was described clearly in the first order.
The 14 day quarantine regional bans are also still in force. I’ll refer to them as the Schengen bans, although more countries are affected by similar bans. There was a second part of the order on September 14 that clarified that visas could be issued while the Schengen bans were in force, BUT AGAIN, the terms of those bans are still in effect. That means that if someone were not affected by the immigrant ban, they would still have to be outside of the Schengen bans area for 14 days prior to entering the USA. However, in practice, BOTH the immigrant ban AND the Schengen bans could both apply to you.
Now, it is also possible that Trump gets re-elected, and if he does he is likely to extend the immigrant ban (10014/10052) beyond December 31. If he does people holding visas will still be affected, but of course the legal battle is not over yet, so it’s possible we could find ways to block that. Indeed, there is a current lawsuit trying to do just that. So – let’s wait and see how that goes. Those of you that watched the first presidential debate will have seen Trump behaving like a petulent child. He did himself no favor with his idiotic performance. Of course a small minority of people probably liked what he did, but that minority is weakening daily. As long as Trump continues to behave like a fool, and as long as Biden takes the high road and stays alive, we should be seeing a Biden win (eventually, after some more lawsuits, possibly).
Lastly about the chances of being able to enter the USA at the moment. I am sure some people will be reporting that they entered the USA and activated their visas, even though the ban should not have allowed that. However, there is such confusion at the moment, that it would not surprise me at all if people managed to enter the USA and become LPRs during the period of the ban. I am not trying to encourage you to try, I’m just saying that some will try, and some will succeed.
Over the next few days we will figure out the terms of the extension and the implementation. WE will try and figure out how to tackle each case, each embassy that hasn’t helped, every scenario. But all that will take time.
So please, take note of what I am saying here. Try and hold your questions for now, there are no answers yet for many of the questions. Just wait, breath, and drink water.
May 4, 2021 at 21:56
Hey Simon
Apologies if I’ve missed a post, but did the DV2020 lawsuit ever have an outcome?
May 4, 2021 at 23:37
Not yet.
October 26, 2020 at 05:36
I am one of the dv 2022 lottery.I found lot of information through videos.
October 26, 2020 at 05:32
Thank you for this fantastic work!!
October 23, 2020 at 21:41
RABI
Helo mr brits
My question is i am dv2021 winners of africa and i am submited ds 260 on augest 21,2020.my case number is 2021AF000111××.but i am not recived emails of kcc.so what is the reason?
And the next question is my case number is current or not visa bulletien number cases?
Thanj you Brits
October 24, 2020 at 04:24
You need to be patient and watch the VB.
October 16, 2020 at 07:33
Hi brits, I’m 2021 winner with case number af52***. I submitted my ds 260 in august but has not received and mail from kcc asking me to sent my documents. Does it mean that my cases is far for my documents to be sent now or what and if that is the case then when should I probably be expecting them to request for my documents?
October 16, 2020 at 21:37
There is no need to send documents this early. Be patient.
October 16, 2020 at 01:42
Thanks for all your insight! After reading your FAQ and the comments, I know I’m permitted to enter DV 2022 if I’ve won a spot in DV 2021. But am I still allowed to apply for DV 2022 if i’ve already submitted my DS-260 and supporting documents for 2021? I’ve got a high Oceania case number so it’s looking unlikely for me. Thanks
October 16, 2020 at 04:29
THat doesn’t make any difference – of course you can enter.
October 16, 2020 at 06:15
Thank you for your response!
October 14, 2020 at 13:30
Hi sir I am married with no kidds but my wife has pregnant now and I am going to process DV lottery during this October my question is if I successfully selected next year when the responses come out . Will my wife go with me or I will be the one who will go
October 14, 2020 at 16:06
Odd question. You can both benefit from a lottery win.
October 9, 2020 at 10:43
hello Brit .. thanks for you r info ..
my case number is 2020AS98xx
actually today i checked the page of my winning latter came But my first letter is deleted now !!! OMG
and dvprogram.state.gov give me a message like that ” the verification period for confirmation number has expired. ”
well what now .. they deleted our winning letter ?! so what will be the curt order ?! where we would follow information about our cases in future .. where i would check for me second interview letter ?
I was waiting for my second interview letter that corona virus started and i did not get any interview time email..
I had got my confirmation email about all of my document Received By KCC a month before the embassies started to closing .. this things really confused me ,dont know what would do and where to look and where to contact and what will be our destiny of 2020 winners !
please if you can tell me and guide me what I and people like me would to do ?
thanks and Regards .
October 9, 2020 at 20:33
There is no need to panic. If we get some cases scheduled, they will receive interview details some other way.
October 6, 2020 at 15:40
Hi Brit,
I have came to US embassy in 30 September but unfortunely my MCU cannot arrive when I came. I have paid the payment for visa interview and told the CO if my MCU will arrive in next week. They still didnt interviewed.
I checked in the ceac, my status is refused but I have gave the reason to the CO. They not give me the AP status. They not interviewed me due to the MCU result but they told me they will info when have a next info from DoS. Please advise, if my status refused, can the CO take me the visa interview again after finish the court?
Thanks.
October 6, 2020 at 23:37
Maybe. You will just have to wait and see.
October 5, 2020 at 17:25
Hi brit I am dv2020eu47k didnt get confirmation email part of Kennedy case,If Curtis Morrison wins on merit case on behalf of his plaintiffs (us) will we be prioritized first on 9k visas?
October 5, 2020 at 22:31
That is yet to be decided.
October 5, 2020 at 06:14
Apologies if the question is very basic, my interview appointment schedules in April 2020 has been canceled due to COVID. I haven’t received any rescheduling or any updates since then. Should I be worried?
October 5, 2020 at 22:13
Oh man – you waited all this time without asking again?? Yes the year ended. There is a chance of some additional visas being issued later, but I suggest you start catching up to find out what is going on.
October 3, 2020 at 19:55
Hallo Brit,good day please i will appreciate if you can help me provide answers to these question, I need them to fill the DS260: 1) I have my Bachelor’s degree and Master’s in the same University for example (The University of xxx.) And i also had my G.C.E ordinary and Advanced levels in same secondary school for exam (Light House Secondary school) my question is how many institutions have I attended in total, 2 or 4?
2) Also should the city where I attended University also be listed as one of my former addresses even though I was there just for studies and always returned to my home address
3) Do you seek to enter the USA for the purpose of performing skilled or unskilled labour but have not been certified by the secretary of labour? Yes or No?
4) Are you a Health care worker seeking to perform such work in the US but have not yet received certification from the commission on graduate of foreign nursing school or form an equivalent approved independent credentialing organisation? Yes or No? Note am a nursing assistant in Belgium
5) Do you have documentation to
establish that you have received vaccinations in accordance with US laws? Yes or No. Note am still in Belgium
Thank you and waiting for your response
October 5, 2020 at 18:09
1. I suggest 4 for clarity.
2. Use your own judgement.
3, 4, and 5 are all answered in my DS260 guide. Read that please!
October 3, 2020 at 19:27
Hey Brit.. My wife and I got the DV visa on 09/24/2020, and we got exempt from PP10014; and we got the Annotation on the stamped Visa.
My our situation was a bit odd, I was physically working in the US on L1 visa prior the PP in April, but my wife (the Main applicant in the DV Lottery) could not follow me to the States on her L2 visa (Spouse of L1) because of COVID-19 shutdown in March; and she was able to come when the international airlines started working.
So basically, I am exempt from the PP but my wife wasn’t, but she is the main applicant, so we have to enter together in we need to travel back to the US.
So, now in September, we back to our previous country to wait for the DV interview, and we got it.
The CO in the embassy was fully aware that we have a house and a life right now in the US, and we need their help to go back if we get the DV visa issued.
Eventually, they have exempt us, because when I entered the US on the L1 visa prior to the PP, I got exempt as a family (even if she wasn’t physically in the US).
October 5, 2020 at 17:54
Great!
October 3, 2020 at 17:39
Dear Brit,
There is one thing I don’t get, why is it gonna take months to enforce courts decision? Last time when Judge Mehta ordered to continue processing DV2020 visas that happened immediately. So can you please explain it in plain English, why do we have to wait so much this time?
Thank you!
October 5, 2020 at 17:23
Because the case is not completed yet. There needs to be more hearings.
October 3, 2020 at 17:25
Update from Gomez Case sent via EmAIL
Dear Gomez Class Members,
We write to update you on the status of the Gomez case. As you may have heard, on Wednesday the federal court issued an order certifying a class of 2020 Diversity Visa Selectees and requiring the State Department to reserve 9,095 diversity visas for processing once we win our case on behalf of the class. The court also appointed the lawyers at the American Immigration Lawyers Association, Justice Action Center, and Innovation Law Lab as class counsel. Please read the court’s order here.
We are disappointed that the court did not order the State Department to reserve the full 30,000 visas that we had requested. The court’s order reserving only 9,095 visas means that more than half of all DV-2020 Selectees will not receive a diversity visa. If we win our case, we assume, but cannot be sure, that the State Department will process and issue the 9,095 reserved visas in numerical order based on diversity visa confirmation number.
You are automatically a member of the certified class if you are a DV-2020 Selectee but have not yet received your 2020 Diversity Visa as of April 23, 2020. You do not need to take any additional steps to become a member of the class, and you will not receive any documentation from the court or counsel of your membership.
Please note that the diversity visas that the court ordered the State Department to reserve will not be processed or issued immediately. We must continue litigating the case in federal court. If we win, the State Department will be required to process and issue the reserved visas.
We understand and appreciate that the uncertainty this has created has been challenging for you and your families, and we will continue to advocate on your behalf. We will continue to share any important updates about the status of the case. We will also post updates on our websites, which are listed below. If you would like to subscribe to our email updates, please click here.
Sincerely,
American Immigration Lawyers Association, http://www.aila.org
Justice Action Center, http://www.justiceactioncenter.org
Innovation Law Lab, http://www.innovationlawlab.org
October 3, 2020 at 15:05
Hello Brit,
Could you please help to clarify the following?
Do DV 2020 winners, that have not yet gone through interview and that are not named plaintiffs from any cases, should contact the following lawyers below in order to be eligible for one of visas out of 9095?
Karen C. Tumlin
Stephen Manning
Nadia Dahab
Tess Hellgren
Jesse Bless
Laboni Hoq
There are discussions over the internet saying that only DV2020 winners who are represented by those lawyers can be eligible for one of those visas out of 9095.
Is that true?
Thank you in advance for the answer!
October 5, 2020 at 17:17
No you do not need to contact those lawyers. Those lawyers were appointed to represent the class – and that means they do not need to have personal contact with each person they are representing in the class. Please do not bother these lawyers, they are very busy!
October 3, 2020 at 12:08
Hello, brit,
Could you explain what does status update date mean? In the CEAC file data, I see that my status is updated on 15-9-2020. I have an interview canceled in march and rescheduled for June and then canceled
I found only two people in my embassy status updated to ready in September; also, it was ready before but the date updated.
Is this have any significance in the interview rank or order or just case number?
October 5, 2020 at 17:02
The status updates are impossible to decipher – so consider them meaningless. YOu could have 1 update, or 100 updates. There is nothing to be learned from the frequency or timing of the updates.
Rank order = YEAR/Region/Case number.
October 3, 2020 at 09:48
Hello brit
I have one question for you
* what actually meaning of ready in CEAC data??
It’s mean your all document clear an ready for an schedule for interview or already receive second latter.
October 5, 2020 at 16:45
Received 2NL.
October 3, 2020 at 07:20
I just would like to ask to the people who received the visa to tell me if any of you succeeded in entering the country on the Visa even if the ban is in effect. can you post where exactly did you enter from as well? TIA
October 3, 2020 at 06:55
Hello sir,
Let me come back in English.
My girlfriend is a dv2020 selected and her status show “issued ” on CEAC webpage, that mean we’re gonna collect her Visa on Monday.
Am a dv2021selected too (CN: 432XX) and I’ve already send my ds260 as a single as I submit when I do my entry on October 2019.
My girlfriend is around 3 weeks pregnant and she’ll like me to married her before she leaves on early January. We’re really loving each other since 5 years but am a little afraid to do that because of the consequences it can have on my case.
1- If I unlocke my ds260 and change the status from single to married at this time, is it allowed, I mean am I not going to be disqualified because of that?
2-At my interview period (May, June or July) she could have already give birth to our child, the fact that I got family (spouse and child) already LPR in the USA can give e me an advantage to have my visa issued ?
3- According to your experience and judgement, what do you advice me to do, I should continue as a single or I should married her and let kcc know?
Thanks for answer me sir, am very confused about this.
Stay safe.
October 5, 2020 at 15:46
1. Yes it’s allowed.
2. No – but at least it means you have a different way to emigrate if you fail in DV.
3. Decisions about getting married are big decisions, not to do with DV. Live your life!
October 3, 2020 at 05:57
Hello Brit
I’m a little bit confused. I’ve checked the ceac data analysis for DV 2020 about the number of visas issued, refused and AP. But i don’t understand cases which are marked ‘ready’. For example in Africa there are about 2k cases marked ready. Did those people (ready category) actually received there 2nl but did not get interviews or their cases are just ready at NVC?.
Because, according to me, at this point in DV 2020, a case is either issued, refused or on AP.
Please give more light on cases marked ‘ready’ at this point.
October 3, 2020 at 08:34
Cases that are ready means all documents has been sent to kcc, and you are ready to be schedule the moment your number is current but the case is still at kcc.
October 3, 2020 at 08:58
What is at NVC then?
October 3, 2020 at 09:24
No, “Ready” status means they have already received 2nl.
October 3, 2020 at 09:41
Thank you. Now I understand what actually meaning of ready in CEAC data
October 5, 2020 at 16:00
@2020, that is incorrect. Please leave the answering to me.
Ready is the status of someone whose case was sent to the embassy, but has not yet been interviewed, or was interviewed and CEAC not updated. In a normal year, many cases stay at ready at the end of the year, probably because people (in large numbers) simply don’t attend their interviews (no shows).
October 5, 2020 at 15:43
This is covered in the FAQ. REady is the status of someone whose case was sent to the embassy, but has not yet been interviewed, or was interviewed and CEAC not updated.
October 3, 2020 at 04:36
sir I’m sorry if I ask stupid questions it is because I am frustrated and to you alone I can ask it sorry.
I can play 2022 it does not cause anything in my case?
October 5, 2020 at 15:40
Yes you can play again. Same answer as I gave the other 200 people who asked the same question here.
April 2, 2021 at 16:52
There are discussions over the internet saying that only DV2020 winners who are represented by those lawyers can be eligible for one of those visas out of 9095.
Is that true?
Thank you in advance for the answer!
April 3, 2021 at 21:55
No. That’s idiotic.
October 3, 2020 at 03:17
DV 2020 reminder:
We are seeing many of you still contacting KCC and embassies.
Please do not contact KCC or the embassies until we achieve a success on the merits (a successful final judgement) before the court.
This will probably take about 3 months at least. There is nothing KCC or embassies can do for you until then.
(this reminder does not apply to expired DVs- once your travel barrier is lifted, I encourage you to try to reschedule interview for re-issuance and see what happens)
October 5, 2020 at 15:38
Ditto.
October 3, 2020 at 01:48
Hello sir
He
Hello brit I hope are you fine, i am confused before
Two days CEAC data show only 7k ready but now it’s show 7500 ready what happens here I don’t understand please help.
Thank you for your efforts or helps.
October 3, 2020 at 09:20
KCC don’t update status as “ready” in the CEAC system it’s embassy to update the same so it’s takes time for them.
October 2, 2020 at 22:55
Thank u for all you have been doing for all the DV winners Sir Britsimon, u are God’s sent, u inspire. I’m a DV winner 2020af27…..I had my interview on e 30th and was given the form 221g by e Co officer requesting me submit a document but unfortunately I couldn’t lay hands on it before mid night. Now I have the document handy, pls can I write and inform them that it’s available or wait for the other to take effect? Thanks
October 5, 2020 at 23:21
If the lawsuit is resolved, you can try again then.