As the U.S. fiscal year 2025 will conclude on September 30, 2025, Diversity Visa (DV) lottery winners face a significant obstacle. The U.S. Department of State’s August Visa Bulletin has established case number cutoffs for green cards through the Diversity Visa lottery for September 2025.
The DOS Visa Bulletin outlines specific cutoffs for September 2025 across all regions. For Asia, the general cutoff is 14,500, with exceptions for Iran at 11,000 and Nepal at 14,450. In Africa, the cutoff is 58,500, except for Algeria (54,500), Egypt (52,000), and Morocco (40,500).
Europe’s cutoff is 23,000, with exceptions for Russia (22,950) and Uzbekistan (15,000). North America (Bahamas) remains current, while Oceania and South America/Caribbean have cutoffs of 1,775 and 2,825, respectively. These limits determine visa availability for DV-2025 applicants based on their regional lottery rank numbers.
For Nepali DV winners, the 14,500 cutoff means those with case numbers above 14,450 will not qualify for visa processing this year. With the fiscal year ending on September 30 and the DV 2026 program starting October 1, this restriction has eliminated the opportunity for many Nepali applicants to pursue U.S. immigration through the 2025 DV program.
In previous years, August and September typically saw relaxed or minimal case number restrictions for Nepali DV winners. For example, in 2022, case number cutoffs were lifted starting in August, broadening eligibility. In 2023, Nepali DV winners with case numbers up to 20,500 were eligible for visa processing in August, and in 2024, the August cutoff was 12,000.
This year, however, the August cutoff was set at 10,650 for Nepali DV winners, and the September limit of 14,450 offers more relaxed access compared to the 13,000 cutoff in 2024.
For the 2025 fiscal year, which began October 1, 2024, 3,861 Nepalis were selected in the DV lottery, placing Nepal third in Asia behind Iran (5,267 selectees) and Afghanistan (4,009 selectees). Globally, 131,060 individuals were selected from 19,927,656 applicants, with only 55,000 visas available worldwide.
In Europe, Uzbekistan led with 5,564 selectees, followed by Turkey (4,194) and Ukraine (4,002). In South America, Cuba had 2,348 selectees, while in Africa, Algeria (5,526), Egypt (5,515), Sudan (5,505), and Kenya (4,459) were among the top selectees.
Under U.S. law, DV 2025 selectees must complete their visa processing by September 30, 2025, or they will not qualify for a visa. Applicants are urged to keep their confirmation numbers until at least this date and to check their status exclusively through the U.S. Department of State’s official website.
The Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, operated annually by the U.S. Department of State under Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, targets individuals from countries with historically low U.S. immigration rates. Applicants must meet strict eligibility requirements, and visas are allocated across six geographic regions, with no country receiving more than 7% of the available visas annually.
Kishor Panthi
View More PostsKishor Panthi is the founder and editor-in-chief of Khasokhas and NepYork. He is the author of three books, “Kampan,” "UNTRANSLATABLE" and “Zero Mile.” He writes about social issues, immigration, and politics.
