The Trump administration has suspended the United States green card diversity lottery, citing national security concerns after authorities revealed that a suspect in a deadly campus shooting entered the country through the program.
US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem announced on Thursday that the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV1) had been paused following revelations about the immigration status of Claudio Neves Valente, a 48-year-old Portuguese national accused of carrying out a series of deadly attacks in Massachusetts.
According to investigators, Neves Valente allegedly stormed a building at Brown University on December 13, opening fire on students sitting examinations. The attack left two people dead and nine others wounded. Authorities say he later killed a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) two days after the Brown University shooting.
In a statement posted on social media, Noem said Neves Valente entered the United States in 2017 through the diversity visa lottery and was subsequently granted permanent residency.
“At President Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS to pause the DV1 program to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program,” Noem wrote.
“This heinous individual should never have been allowed in our country.”
Following a days-long manhunt, police said Neves Valente was found dead on Thursday evening in what authorities described as a suicide, bringing the search to an end.
About the green card lottery
The diversity visa lottery allows up to 55,000 people each year to obtain permanent residency in the United States. It is designed to promote immigration from countries with historically low levels of migration to the US, according to the State Department.
Applicants must meet specific eligibility requirements, including possessing at least a high school education or two years of qualifying work or training experience. Successful applicants are also subjected to background checks and in-person interviews as part of the vetting process.
Political and policy implications
The suspension of the program is expected to reignite debate over US immigration policy, particularly the future of the diversity visa system, which has long been criticized by President Trump and his allies as a security risk. Supporters of the program, however, argue it promotes fairness and global diversity while maintaining rigorous screening standards.
The Department of Homeland Security did not specify how long the suspension would remain in effect, saying only that the program would remain on hold pending further review.
The decision comes amid heightened political scrutiny of immigration pathways and renewed calls from the administration for stricter controls following high-profile acts of violence linked to foreign nationals.
