The U.S. Department of State and other organizations sponsor and support various educational and training programs, scholarships and opportunities throughout the year for Bulgarian scholars, students and professionals. These programs cover a wide range of interests including law, human rights, journalism, education, teaching English, and other disciplines and are intended to introduce participants to the United States and American people and culture, as well as provide them with a chance to exchange ideas with their American colleagues. Educational and cultural exchanges create relationships that build bridges of cooperation and understanding between peoples.
Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Fellowship Program 2022:
The 2022 Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Summer Institute for Youth is now open for applications.
Application deadline: February 16, 2022.
Diversity Visa (DV) Program – 2022:
The Diversity Immigrant Visa Program makes available up to 55,000 diversity visas (DVs) each year, drawn from random selection among all entries, to persons who meet strict eligibility requirements from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.
Applicants may submit entries for the DV-2022 program electronically at dvprogram.state.gov,between 7 PM Bulgarian time on Wednesday, October 7, 2020, and 7 PM Bulgarian time on Tuesday, November 10, 2020. No late entries or paper entries will be accepted. There is no fee to enter.
Instructions for the DV 2022 program are posted in both English and Bulgarian on the Embassy’s website: bg.usembassy.gov.
The law allows only one entry for each person during each registration period. Entrants who submit more than one entry will be ineligible to receive a DV. However, a husband and a wife may each submit a separate entry, listing the other as a derivative dependent, if each meets the eligibility requirements.
It is very important for entrants to keep a record of their unique confirmation number for the submission of their DV entry until at least September 30, 2022. The confirmation number is the only way to check whether an entry has been selected and to obtain visa application and appointment information, if selected. The unique confirmation number helps to protect DV entrants against fraud, malfeasance, or other problems with the mail. Unscrupulous visa facilitators have been known to assist entrants with their entries, retain the confirmation page, and then demand more money in exchange for information on the entry. Entrants can avoid this by ensuring they receive the unique confirmation number at the time of entry.
Beginning May 8, 2021, DV-2022 entrants will be able to use their unique confirmation number provided at registration to check the online Entrant Status Check at https://dvprogram.state.gov/ to see if their entry was selected. The online Entrant Status Check will inform successful entrants how to apply for DVs for themselves and their eligible family members. The Department also will confirm visa interview appointments through the Entrant Status Check.
Successful entrants are not notified by mail, email or over the telephone of the status of their E-DV online entry. All mail, emails, or telephone calls claiming to notify entrants they have been selected for the DV program are not legitimate.
