The Trump administration suspended the visa program last year after a Portuguese national who entered via the lottery was suspected of murdering a professor at MIT and committing a shooting at Brown University. The suspect took his own life following the attacks. The State Department must now comply with the court's Oct. 18 deadline.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
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US Judge Orders State Department to Reinstate Diversity Visa Lottery by Oct 18
US Politics5 days ago
A federal court in California has commanded the US government to reopen the selection process for permanent residency to foreign nationals by Sunday. Judge Jinsook Ohta, a Biden appointee, ruled that the State Department must restart the Diversity Immigrant Visa lottery for fiscal year 2027 to provide visas to 50,000+ applicants annually. The program specifically targets individuals from countries with low rates of immigration to the US, including many from Africa.
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