DV-2026 Diversity Visa Cap Set at 52,101 After Mandatory Deductions

The State Department’s September 2026 Visa Bulletin sets the DV-2026 limit at 52,101 visas, while recent reporting describes a 3,150-slot reduction from the statutory 55,000 cap. The official figure controls the current fiscal year’s allocation. It also leaves selectees facing a hard deadline.

The reported reduction would lower the annual green card lottery pool from 55,000 to about 51,850 visas. The bulletin instead lists 52,101 after mandatory deductions tied to federal law. That difference makes the bulletin’s figure the operative number for applicants trying to finish the process.

The State Department can issue DV-2026 visas only through September 30, 2026. September 9, 2026, leaves less than three weeks before unused numbers expire. Selection alone does not guarantee permanent residence.

Congress created the deductions through NACARA and Section 5104 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024. NACARA can divert up to 5,000 diversity visas. Section 5104 adds another deduction of 3,000.

The DV-2026 fiscal year began October 1, 2025, and ends September 30, 2026. The statutory ceiling remains 55,000, but the effective annual number falls after those required reductions.

September cutoffs show how many regional numbers remain available

The September allocation uses separate regional cutoff numbers. Applicants below the applicable cutoff can remain eligible for that month, subject to the other requirements of the program.

The numbers apply during the final month of DV-2026 issuance. A case that does not receive a visa or adjustment of status by the fiscal-year close cannot carry forward into the next year.

A court order ended the pause, but not the fiscal-year deadline

The administration had paused DV-2026 visa issuance before processing resumed. In Medani v. Trump, a federal court required the State Department to resume issuing the visas.

The department published updated guidance on September 2, 2026. It said the pause was no longer in effect as of August 28, 2026.

Stuart Anderson said selectees who miss the deadline lose the benefit of their registration:

“Selectees who do not receive visas or status by September 30, 2026, will derive no further benefit from their DV-2026 registration.”

The court action restored processing, but it did not extend the fiscal year. The September 30 cutoff remains the date by which a visa or status must be completed.

The program normally makes up to 55,000 immigrant visas available each fiscal year to applicants from countries with historically low immigration to the United States. No single country may receive more than 7 percent of the available diversity visas in one year.

For DV-2026, the ineligible-country list included Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China, including Hong Kong SAR, Colombia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, South Korea, Venezuela, and Vietnam.

The country restrictions and the annual ceiling leave many more selectees than available visa numbers. Any reduction therefore increases competition among people seeking to complete processing before the deadline.

The next lottery cycle is already the subject of a court fight

The State Department has not set registration dates for DV-2027. Red Eagle Law filed a lawsuit seeking to force the next registration period.

Attorney Morrison said the law requires a 30-day entry period during the prior fiscal year:

“The law requires a 30-day entry period to take place within the prior fiscal year”

Morrison also said:

“There are only 42 days left in the fiscal year, and no entry period has been announced”

The DV-2026 fiscal year closes on September 30, 2026. That date will end issuance for the current pool while the legal dispute over the next cycle continues.