President Donald Trump has ordered a suspension of the diversity visa lottery program, also known as the green card lottery. This action was taken after it was revealed that the suspect in the recent shootings at Brown University and MIT, Claudio Neves Valente, entered the United States through this program.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the pause on the program, stating that "this heinous individual should never have been allowed in our country." Valente, a 48-year-old Portuguese national, is suspected of killing two students and wounding nine others at Brown University, as well as killing an MIT professor, before dying from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He obtained his legal permanent residence status in 2017. The diversity visa program, established by Congress, makes up to 50,000 green cards available annually through a lottery to individuals from countries with low rates of immigration to the U.
S., many of which are in Africa. In the 2025 lottery, nearly 20 million people applied, with over 131,000 selected, including spouses.
Portuguese citizens were awarded 38 slots in that lottery. Winners of the lottery are invited to apply for a green card and must undergo vetting, including interviews at consulates, similar to other green card applicants.
President Trump has historically opposed the diversity visa lottery, and this move is seen as another instance of using tragic events to advance his immigration policy agenda. This suspension is expected to face legal challenges.