Top Visa Requirements For Visiting Nigeria (2024)
This article is about the top visa requirements for visiting Nigeria in this year 2024. Over the last 10 years, the Nigerian government has worked to raise the nation’s Ease of Doing Business index. It introduced new visa policies for tourists and business travellers in 2017. The Nigeria Visa Policy of 2020 was used to amend this. You are eligible for a 90-day Short Visitor Visa if you are visiting Nigeria for leisure, sports, entertainment, health, or religious purposes.
Five years ago, if you wanted to apply for a tourist or visitors visa to Nigeria, you would have needed to select among six categories. You might now comfortably fit into a minimum of 75 categories. Additionally, you can now apply for a visa through one of four authorised channels, as opposed to the former requirement of applying solely at the Nigerian Consular Mission closest to you.
Visa-free entry into Nigeria is restricted to ECOWAS/CEDEAO member nations as well as the citizens of Chad and Cameroon. They require two blank pages in their passport for the stamps, just like everyone else, and a passport that is valid for at least six months. The ECOWAS/CEDEAO travel certificate is an alternative for them to use when travelling. Passports must be valid for at least six months in order for anyone to enter Nigeria.
HOW TO APPLY FOR A NIGERIAN VISA 2024
Travellers are encouraged to use any of the Nigerian Immigration Service‘s visa application centres worldwide. Additionally, the current fees payable range from $2 to $400, depending on your nationality and whether you’re applying for a multiple-entry or single-entry visa.
WHAT TO KNOW IF YOU ARE TRAVELLING TO NIGERIA ON A US PASSPORT
The Online Integrated Services (OIS) centres in New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Houston, or Washington, D.C. accept applications from visitors using US passports; the application process costs $160. You choose your location and schedule an appointment online to start the procedure. Obtaining the correct passport photo specifications for upload is however, a frequent source of frustration for online applicants, particularly those who are submitting for the first time. The passport photo must be 35×40 mm (1.37 x 1.57 in), coloured, and placed on a white backdrop.
Your payment sheet, acknowledgement slip, and application form must all be downloaded and printed. Make sure you also have two recent passport photos, a letter of invitation from your host in Nigeria, a printout of their passport data page, an email printout confirming the appointment date, airline and hotel reservations, and two printouts of your passport.
In addition, depending on the center you’re applying through, bank statements with a minimum amount of $500–1000 must be provided. You should have at least two months’ worth of these. Verification of your polio and yellow fever immunizations is also required. The most crucial thing to remember is that, regardless of the outcome of your visa application, you will receive your passport back in one of two USPS Priority Mail Express packages that you send in with these documents and matching stamps.
WHAT TO KNOW IF YOU ARE TRAVELLING TO NIGERIA FROM THE REST OF THE WORLD
All travelers, including nationals of African Union (AU) member states, are eligible to apply for an e-Visa or Visa on Arrival. When applying for a Visa on Arrival, Westerners must pay somewhere between $140 and $270 and provide return tickets, a white background photo from their passport, and a scanned copy of their passport data page. Biometrics also come with a $90 fee.
Applying on your own is possible if you follow the comprehensive instructions on the Nigeria Immigration Service website. The flight itinerary, a copy of your passport data page, a copy of your visa application, a letter of introduction, a letter of invitation, and a certificate of incorporation (for business travelers) are the documents you’ll need to have ready to post to the portal. Only two weeks before to the departure of your flight will you apply for a Visa on Arrival, and you must get an email confirming your acceptance before departing your home country.
Keep in mind that the immigration authorities need the Reference ID and Application ID in order to validate your application and allow safe passage into Nigeria. You must travel to Nigeria within the 14-day window specified in the first approval by letter. You will be issued a 30-day visa at the port of entry. Apply for a Visa on Arrival and email the Comptroller-General Immigration (cgis@nigeriaimmigration.gov.ng) with a copy of your passport data page and your child’s birth certificate if you are traveling with kids. Await approval via email before to traveling to the port of entry, just like with the Visa on Arrival.
HOW TO EXTEND YOUR STAY IN NIGERIA
You can extend your short-stay visa, with the exception of transit visas and temporary work permits. You can accomplish this by going in person to the Abuja or Lagos headquarters of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) at least thirty days before to the expiration of your visa. Requests for extensions longer than ninety days are accepted.
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU FINALLY ARRIVE NIGERIA
Now that you have your visa, you’ve reached your destination in Lagos or Abuja. You’ll need to exercise patience navigating the Nigerian airport system; estimate two to three hours to get through passport control and customs. If this is your first trip to the country, be prepared for the humidity, occasional unruliness, and possibly unpleasant greetings from airport staff. Maintain a smile, but move on. Notwithstanding a few of these shortcomings, there is a whole other world beyond the terminal; get ready for one of the most amazing travel experiences you will ever have in West Africa.
