This week, Cubans received negative news related to legal emigration to the United States: Cuba was excluded of the 2026 Visa Lottery program, also known as the “Bombo”.
This lottery, which offers people from all over the world the possibility of emigrating to the United States if they are selected, will no longer be an option for Cubans in the next cycle.
The Diversity Visa (DV) Program, which has historically been an escape route for thousands of Cubans, establishes that natives of countries with high levels of immigration to the United States in the last five years are not eligible.
Cuba is among the nations that fail to comply with this requirement, along with countries such as Mexico, Haiti, Brazil and Venezuela. According to the program’s instructions, more than 50,000 nationals of these countries have immigrated to the United States in the last five years. This excludes them from this opportunity.
This exclusion leaves Cubans without one of the few avenues for legal emigration that were openly available and without the need for family ties in the United States. For many, the “hype” represented hope for a better future abroad.
Legal ways for Cubans to immigrate to the United States
Despite this, there are still other legal ways to immigrate to the United States, although they are more limited. Among them is the Cuban Family Reunification Parole Program (CFRP). This allows US citizens or legal permanent residents to apply for parole for family members in Cuba.
In addition, there is the humanitarian parole for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans (CHNV), announced by the US Department of Homeland Security, which allows citizens of these countries to request entry in a safe and orderly manner.
On the other hand, the US Embassy in Havana offers limited consular services, including the processing of immigrant visas. However, nonimmigrant visas, such as B1/B2, remain suspended, further restricting options for those Cubans seeking to immigrate legally.
Without a doubt, the exclusion of Cuba from the 2026 Visa Lottery program represents a hard blow for Cubans who dreamed of finding a legal exit to the United States.
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