Immigrants in the United States seeking permanent resident status will have from Oct. 7-Nov. 6 to apply for the fiscal year 2004 diversity immigrant visa lottery, the U.S. State Department has announced.

Up to 55,000 permanent resident visas, known as green cards, will be granted under the program. The visas are reserved for persons from countries that have fewer than 50,000 immigrants to the United States annually.

In the fiscal 2003 lottery, a total of 172 Latvians won permanent residency.

Further information on the visa program is available from the Bureau of Consular Affairs Web site.