Who to List on Your DV Lottery Application: Spouse, Children, and Common Mistakes

On the DV lottery application, you must list your spouse (if you’re married at the time of entry) and all unmarried children under 21 — regardless of whether they live with you or plan to move to the U.S.

In short

• List your spouse whenever married, except for divorce, death, or their U.S. citizenship/green card status — living apart without a court order doesn’t exempt you.
• Listing a future spouse who wasn’t yet married to you at the time of entry can lead to the applicant’s disqualification.
• Stepchildren must be listed just like biological children, even after divorcing their parent.
• Family composition is fixed as of the entry date; changes afterward — marriage or a child’s birth — aren’t a violation.
• The photo must have been taken within the last 6 months — a photo from last year leads to disqualification.

Which Spouse You Must List on the Application

If you’re married at the time you submit your entry, you must list your spouse — regardless of whether you live together or apart, and regardless of whether they plan to move to the U.S. Without a divorce decree, the marriage is formally still in effect, and an intention to divorce in the future changes nothing: without the document, the spouse must be listed.

The only exception is a legal separation ordered by a court. This is a situation where a couple officially remains married but lives apart based on a court order. Simply moving out and no longer being in contact isn’t enough: without a court order, the spouse still must be listed. At the same time, having such a court order doesn’t count against you — the State Department specifically clarifies that an applicant isn’t disqualified for being legally separated.

The reverse mistake happens just as often: if you’re not married at the time of entry but plan to marry soon, you cannot list your future spouse. The State Department explicitly warns that listing someone who wasn’t your spouse at the time of entry can lead to disqualification.

The State Department explicitly warns that listing someone who wasn’t your spouse at the time of entry can lead to disqualification.

There are three cases where a spouse doesn’t need to be listed: if the marriage has been legally dissolved (with supporting documentation), if the spouse has died, or if the spouse is already a U.S. citizen or green card holder — such a spouse doesn’t need and won’t be issued a DV visa.

Consequences of Failing to List a Required Spouse

If you fail to list a spouse who should have been listed, you can be found ineligible for the DV program — even if you were selected in the drawing. In that case, the spouse and children lose their ability to receive derivative visas under that case if the principal applicant was selected.

Which Children Must Be Listed on the Application

The application must list all living children who are unmarried and under 21 as of the entry date — a broader list than applicants usually assume. This includes biological children, legally adopted children, and stepchildren — the children of your current spouse.

A child must be listed regardless of whether they live with the applicant or not, and regardless of whether they plan to move to the U.S. This is where applications contain the most errors.

Stepchildren are a particular source of confusion. A common scenario: the applicant divorces, the children from the previous marriage stay with the ex-spouse, and they stop being considered “the applicant’s own” when filling out the entry. Under the program’s rules, they still had to be listed, and in some cases this obligation remains even after divorcing the child’s parent. The mistake is discovered only after winning, during document verification — and the original entry cannot be rewritten retroactively.

The mistake is discovered only after winning, during document verification — and the original entry cannot be rewritten retroactively.

There is one exception: children who are already U.S. citizens or green card holders don’t need to be included in the mandatory list — they don’t need a visa and won’t be issued one.

There are also two separate cases where a child won’t be able to receive a visa as a derivative applicant: if they’ve already turned 21 by the time of entry, or if they’re married.

The Entry Date and the Child Status Protection Act

Family composition is fixed as of the entry date: you only need to list those who were your spouse or child at that exact point in time. If a marriage takes place after the entry was submitted, that’s not a violation. A child born after the entry was submitted is also not a violation.

If you later win the lottery, a new spouse or child can be added to the case at the next stage of processing. But there’s a difference between a genuine change in marital or family status after registration and a later attempt to pass someone off as a spouse or child for immigration benefit purposes — such circumstances are reviewed separately.

For children who turn 21, the Child Status Protection Act applies — a law designed to protect a child’s age status. If a child was under 21 at the time the entry was submitted but turned 21 afterward, under certain circumstances their age for immigration purposes may be calculated differently, using a separate formula. This doesn’t mean that turning 21 automatically voids everything, nor does it mean a child’s age is permanently “frozen” as of the entry date — the outcome depends on the specific circumstances of the case, and such a child should be listed on the entry regardless.

Photo Requirements for the DV Application

A separate photo is required for the applicant and for each spouse or child whose information is mandatory for the entry.

• File format and size: JPEG, square image 600 × 600 pixels, file no larger than 240 KB.
• Age of photo: the photo must have been taken within the last 6 months — a photo from last year’s entry doesn’t qualify by definition.
• Background and face: white, light, plain background; glasses aren’t allowed; the face must be fully visible and facing directly toward the camera.
• Hijab: separate photo requirements apply for those who wear a hijab.
• Reusing a photo: you cannot submit the same photo used in the previous year’s entry, even if your appearance hasn’t changed and the photo looks good.

The State Department explicitly warns: reusing last year’s photo can lead to disqualification — the applicant will be found ineligible. Every year, photos must be new for everyone listed on the entry.

The State Department explicitly warns: reusing last year’s photo can lead to disqualification

Separate Entries for Spouses, and What Happens if the Principal Applicant Dies

Spouses can each submit a separate entry — but only if both independently meet the program’s education or work experience requirements. In practice, it works like this: the husband submits his own entry, listing his wife and all children who need to be listed, while the wife separately submits her own entry and likewise lists her husband and the children. The family ends up with two independent entries, and each is selected independently of the other. If one spouse wins, the other, provided they meet the requirements, can proceed as a derivative applicant — and vice versa.

However, submitting multiple entries in the name of the same person to improve the odds is not allowed. Each person is entitled to only one entry per registration period — multiple entries from one participant lead to disqualification of all of that person’s entries.

There’s a separate risk tied to the death of the principal applicant. The spouse’s and children’s eligibility for a Diversity visa is derivative of the principal applicant, so the principal applicant’s death before the process is completed can prevent family members from continuing the case as derivative applicants. But it’s not worth drawing a universal conclusion from that single point: the outcome depends on the stage the case had reached — whether the principal applicant had already obtained status and what was happening with the family members’ cases at that time. This kind of situation calls for individual review, which is typically handled by immigration attorneys.

What to Check Before Submitting Your Entry

1. Set aside time to review your entry before filling it out — that’s usually enough to avoid a mistake that can’t be fixed later.
2. Write down every family member who must be listed on the entry — your spouse and all children who meet the criteria.
3. Check each person’s status as of the entry date, not the current date: whether you were married, how old the child was, and whether the child was married.
4. Check whether any family member holds U.S. citizenship or a green card — this status affects whether that person needs to be listed on the entry.
5. Fill out the entry only after this review, not before — the cost of a mistake here is high.

It’s recommended that you submit your own entry: the State Department advises this so that your personal information isn’t handled by a third party. An attorney or intermediary isn’t needed to submit an entry.

What to check before submitting your DV entry

• Set aside time to review the entry before filling it outrequired
• Write down every family member who must be listedrequiredspouse and all children who meet the criteria
• Check each person’s status as of the entry daterequiredmarriage, child’s age, whether the child was married
• Check whether anyone holds U.S. citizenship or a green cardrequiredaffects whether that person must be listed
• Fill out the entry only after this reviewrequired
• Submit the entry yourself, without intermediariesthis is what the State Department recommends

Frequently asked questions

What happens if a child turns 21 after the entry was submitted but before the visa is issued?

In that case, the Child Status Protection Act applies: if the child was under 21 when the entry was submitted, their age for immigration purposes may be calculated using a separate formula rather than their actual birth date. This doesn’t mean turning 21 automatically voids everything — such a child should be listed on the entry regardless, and the specific outcome depends on the circumstances of the case.

Can an entry be corrected if, after winning, it turns out a stepchild was left off?

No, the original entry cannot be rewritten retroactively — the mistake is discovered only after winning, during document verification, and it can’t be fixed at that stage. This is exactly why family composition should be checked before submission, not after.

What if one spouse doesn’t meet the program’s education or work experience requirements?

A separate entry for each spouse is only possible if both independently meet the program’s requirements. If one spouse doesn’t qualify by education or work experience, a separate entry can’t be submitted in their name — but they can still take part as a derivative applicant on the entry of the spouse who won.

Do you need to list an unmarried partner if there’s no official marriage?

The obligation to list a spouse applies to a legally registered marriage as of the entry date — if the marriage isn’t officially registered, that person isn’t considered a spouse for entry purposes. Conversely, listing someone who wasn’t legally your spouse at the time of entry can lead to disqualification.