Bermudians have been told they cannot strike the jackpot in a worldwide lottery for American citizenship.

United States immigration chiefs have begun advertising the Diversity Visa Lottery Program so non-Americans can apply for permanent US status.

The ad, which says 55,000 immigrant visas will be made available, has already appeared in The Royal Gazette .

But Bermudians have been barred from applying for the fourth year running.

People born in Great Britain or its dependent territories -- which includes Bermuda -- do not qualify for the special visa programme.

That is because the United Kingdom already has a high number of applicants for non-immigrant visas to the States.

A spokeswoman for the US Consulate in Devonshire said: "Great Britain has a lot of people applying for work permits and green cards, seeking temporary residence rights in the US.

"For that reason, the UK and its dependent territories -- like Bermuda -- do not qualify for the visa lottery. It's hard to say if Bermuda will become eligible in the future but it looks unlikely.'' She said Bermudians who wanted to live in the US would have to apply for green cards or have family connections in America. But she defended the decision to advertise the lottery in Bermuda. "There are many people living in Bermuda who do not have Bermudian status and who are not British,'' she added.

"There are large groups of Portuguese, Greeks and other nationalities on the Island.'' Other countries which do not qualify for the visa lottery are Canada, China, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Philippines, Poland, South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Bermuda was included when the lottery applications were launched five years ago but British dependent territories were ineligible the next year.

The deadline for registering for the visa lottery is November 24 and interested Bermuda residents should contact the Consulate offices on 295-1342.