Alternate Chargeability Law & Legal Definition

An alien who is born in an ineligible country may participate in the Green Card Lottery by alternatively claiming chargeability to the country of birth of a spouse or a parent. In case of claiming chargeability to spouse’s country of birth, an alien can claim the spouse's country of birth as his/her native country provided his/her spouse was born in an eligible country. The alien can claim chargeability to parent's country of birth as his/her native country provided neither of his/her parents was a permanent resident in the country of his/her birth when the alien was born.