In a sharply worded decision, a California federal judge has ordered Secretary of State Marco Rubio to launch the registration window for the 2027 Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) program no later than midnight on 15 October. The ruling stems from a class-action suit filed by would-be applicants who argued that repeated delays violated the Immigration and Nationality Act’s mandate for an annual lottery granting up to 55,000 green-cards to nationals of under-represented countries. The State Department had postponed the 2027 entry period while it reevaluated technology vendors and security vetting protocols in the wake of last year’s data-breach. Plaintiffs countered that the pause unfairly disadvantaged lower-income families who rely on the no-sponsor pathway the DV program offers. For U.S. employers, the DV lottery—though relatively small in numbers—remains an ancillary talent pool, particularly for entry-level STEM hires who may not win the H-1B cap. A timely opening keeps onboarding calendars predictable; a slip could push arrival dates into FY 2028. Companies that assist winners with adjustment of status should be ready for an accelerated timetable: the judge instructed the Department to publish the entry period, updated photo guidelines, and a contingency plan for technical outages all at once. The Department of Justice is reviewing whether to appeal, but practitioners doubt a stay will be granted given the tight statutory calendar. Mobility teams should circulate alerts to overseas employees now—entry will likely run only four weeks instead of the usual six, compressing document-preparation lead times.
Source: Law360
