Why the US is targeting the diversity visa lottery and what it means for applicants

By Kaanita Iyer, Priscilla Alvarez, CNN

(CNN) — The Department of Homeland Security announced its intention to pause a visa program intended to admit certain individuals to the United States, though it’s unclear whether it’s been suspended entirely.

The move comes after the suspect in the Brown University shooting was identified as a green-card holder who immigrated to the country through the program. It’s the latest attempt by the administration to broadly tighten the US immigration system following domestic incidents.

“At President (Donald) Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS to pause the DV1 program to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on X late Thursday. DHS oversees the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Claudio Neves Valente, the suspect in Saturday’s shooting at Brown University who is also accused of killing a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor on Monday, was found dead Thursday night.

Valente was identified as a 48-year-old former Brown University student and Portuguese national. Noem said Thursday that he came to the United States in 2017 on a DV1 visa and received a green card.

The State Department runs the diversity visa program, which is designed for individuals in countries that are determined by a formula to have a low enough level of immigration to the US. Those who arrive to the US under the program are also issued green cards. The issuance of those green cards is handled by DHS.

The bulk of the program falls under the State Department, which would presumably be charged with pausing the program. It’s unclear what direction Noem could provide, aside from pausing the issuance of green cards for those in the program.

“The horrific incidents this week demonstrate the threat the diversity visa program poses to American security and safety, which President Trump has long worked to fix. The Department of State is working closely with Department of Homeland Security to put in place all necessary measures to protect America from this threat,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement.

CNN also reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for additional details.

Trump has long sought to end the program

The diversity visa program has long been a target of President Donald Trump’s ire — he took aim at it during his first term after an Uzbek national who was a recipient of the program was suspected of killing eight people in a terrorist attack in New York City.

At the time, Trump backed a Republican-led effort to eliminate the diversity visa program and certain categories of family-based green cards, and then transform the remaining employment-based visas into a point system that favors heavily highly skilled, highly educated, English-speaking immigrants.

The diversity visa program offers green cards for people “from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States,” according to the State Department website.

The US admits up to 55,000 immigrants each year as part of the program through random selection. The nationalities who have come through the program have evolved over the years. According to federal data, most of the participants in fiscal year 2026 were from Africa, followed by nationals from Asia and Europe.

Those who enter the US on a diversity visa are required to have completed the equivalent of high school education or “two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform.”

While individuals are selected for visas randomly, they still must meet security and eligibility requirements that all immigrants must clear to obtain their visas.

In some cases, people already in the United States can also apply for the diversity visa program.

“DV lottery winners who are already legally residing in the United States must apply through USCIS to adjust their status to permanent residence,” said Jeremy McKinney, an immigration attorney. “(State Department) not only administers the lottery but also issues the immigrant visas.”

Thursday’s announcement marks the latest escalation in the Trump administration’s ramped up immigration crackdown in recent weeks.

Following the shooting of two National Guard members by an Afghan national late last month, the administration took several steps to curb legal immigration, including reexamination of green cards issued to people from 19 countries of concern and the pause of all asylum decisions.

Earlier this week, Trump signed a proclamation expanding the list of countries with full or partial travel restrictions to 39, increasing from the previous list of 19 countries.

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CNN’s Xiaoqian Lin, Prisc Betsy Klein and Aleena Fayaz contributed to this report.