Online DV lottery put applicants in disarray

The US State Department on October 15 issued new instructions asking the applicants for the Diversity Visa lottery programme to register electronically through a designated Internet web site, www.dvlottery.state.gov.

Applicants may access the web site between November 1 and December 30 to fill in the electronic diversity visa entry form. "Paper entries and mail-in requests for diversity visa registration will no longer be accepted," said the instruction from the USA.

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Lakhs of people run the risk of being cheated with a promise to secure US visa under the DV-2005 programme as many organisations, whether licensed or not, are alluring people to submit applications through them or their agents in exchange of a handsome amount of money.

Submission of applications for DV lottery this time is difficult for most people as it has to be done online. Most of the applications need help from those who have the facility or the skill to visit the site and fill in application forms along with scanned photographs.

This has turned the cyber cafés in the capital into bazaars of filling in DV forms. Many are attracting people with newspaper advertisements while some cafés have hung banners at street corners and crossings.

These cafés are assuring people of filling in the forms with nominal fees. Some are charging Tk 150 while many have made it more competitive fixing the rate at Tk 30.

Hundreds of thousands of people apply for DV lottery from Bangladesh.

In previous years, the applicants had sent paper entries and the government earned huge money in revenue from its postal department.

But this year, the online system deprives the postal department of earning revenue by selling stamps.

"We are charging Tk 120 for each person to fill out DV forms. We have also sent printed application forms with detailed rules through our thana level agents asking rural people to send inputs to us. With their inputs, we'll fill in the forms electronically," said Swapan, a studio businessman in Malibagh crossing.

A cyber café in Motijheel T&T Colony offers the service at Tk 30 while elsewhere in the city many café owners have hung banners warning people not to be cheated by inefficient cafes.