The United States government has officially released the list of countries whose citizens were selected for the 2026 Diversity Visa (DV-2026) programme, commonly known as the Green Card Lottery, with 16 West African nations appearing on the final list of registered selectees.
The Kentucky Consular Center in Williamsburg, Kentucky, confirmed that roughly 129,516 prospective applicants, including selectees and their accompanying spouses and children, have been registered and can now confirm their selection. This figure is intentionally higher than the available visa slots to account for applicants who may drop out or be found ineligible during processing.
Over 20 Million Entries Received
The lottery received 20,822,624 qualified entries submitted during a 37-day window that ran from October 2, 2024, to November 7, 2024. Under the programme, up to 55,000 permanent resident visas are made available each year to nationals of countries with historically low immigration rates to the United States. However, the actual DV-2026 limit has been reduced to approximately 51,850 due to provisions under the NACARA legislation and the National Defence Authorisation Act for FY2024.
West African Countries on the DV-2026 List
The following West African countries had citizens registered as selectees, with each figure representing the total number of prospective applicants, including family members:
- Algeria — 5,457
- Benin — 1,064
- Burkina Faso — 252
- Cabo Verde — 35
- Côte d'Ivoire — 926
- The Gambia — 198
- Ghana — 1,642
- Guinea — 1,051
- Guinea-Bissau — 10
- Liberia — 1,593
- Mali — 268
- Mauritania — 261
- Niger — 109
- Senegal — 478
- Sierra Leone — 639
- Togo — 2,473
Steps for Selected Applicants
To qualify for an immigrant visa, principal applicants must prove they hold at least a high school education or its equivalent, or two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training. Applicants already living legally inside the United States may apply to adjust their status through the US Citizenship and Immigration Services rather than processing their case at an overseas consulate.
All selectees are urged to move quickly. Any applicant who does not receive a visa or status adjustment before September 30, 2026, will lose all benefit from their DV-2026 registration, and no extensions will be granted. The same deadline applies to spouses and children seeking to join or accompany a principal applicant.
Those interested in the DV-2027 programme are advised to monitor the US Department of State's Diversity Visa web page for updates on the registration period, which will be announced in the coming months.
In a related story, Legit.ng reported the full list of African countries selected for the 2026 US Diversity Visa programme. Additionally, Legit.ng previously reported that the US had admitted to mislabelling some African countries on a map used during an event at an international health conference, highlighting six African nations: Nigeria, Mozambique, Uganda, Côte d'Ivoire, Malawi, and Cameroon. According to a Substack post by AIDS expert Emily Bass, who shared a photo of the slide, not one of the six countries was placed correctly.
