In this post, we will discuss in detail the qualifications of the children who are supposed to be added as derivatives in the application. These three categories of children that are considered qualified as derivatives in the diversity visa lottery program. First of all these three categories of children should fulfill the following: they should be under the age of 21 years old and they all should be unmarried and single.
When entering into the diversity visa lottery, you are supposed to list the number of children that you have and you also include all the details about the children.
The first category of children includes all living natural children. These are the children that you have given birth to or all the children that are biologically yours. They are eligible to be added as derivatives in the application.
The second category is all living children that are legally adopted by you. These are the children that you have acquired court procedures or legal procedures. By the law, they belong to you. They all are eligible to be added as derivatives.
The third category includes all stepchildren. these are the children of your spouse and this spouse must be legally married to you. All the children that your spouse came in to join you with are qualified to be added as derivatives. It is important to note that even if the child does not currently live with you or even if you are no longer married to that spouse, these children are still eligible to be added as derivatives in your diversity visa lottery application
Married children and children who are already aged 21 or older are not eligible. Even if your child is under the age of 21 and he or she is married they are not eligible to be added as a derivative.
There is another important thing to note: this is the Child Status Protection Act. What does this act do? This act was put forth to protect all the children that attained the age of 21 years during the processing of the diversity visa. This means that when you were entering into the diversity visa lottery program, the child was not 21 years of age yet but during the process, he or she turned 21. This act will protect that child.
Finally, this last category of a child who is already a U.S, citizen or a legal permanent resident. When you submit your diversity visa entry you may omit that child that is already in the United States in your application. You will not be penalized.