US Green Card Lottery: African Countries Selected for the 2026 Diversity Visa Program

The US State Department has published the African breakdown for the DV-2026 Diversity Visa program, commonly known as the Green Card Lottery. The Kentucky Consular Center registered about 129,516 prospective applicants, including selected entrants and their spouses and children, from 20,822,624 qualified entries submitted during the 2024 application period.

The Diversity Visa program makes up to 55,000 permanent-resident visas available each year to people from countries with historically low immigration rates to the United States. For DV-2026, however, the effective limit stands at approximately 51,850 visas after deductions required under US law.

Visa numbers are distributed across six geographic regions. No more than 7% may go to applicants chargeable to any single country. Selected applicants must move quickly through the required process: anyone who does not receive a visa or an adjustment of status by September 30, 2026, will lose the benefit of the selection.

Among the African countries listed, Egypt recorded 5,527 prospective applicants, followed by Algeria with 5,457 and Sudan with 5,226. Other large totals included Kenya at 3,949, Morocco at 3,670, Cameroon at 3,533, Ethiopia at 3,287 and Tunisia at 202. The list also includes countries with far smaller numbers, such as Cabo Verde with 35, the Central African Republic with 19, and Comoros and Equatorial Guinea with 12 each.