From August 1, Nigeria will begin fully enforcing new immigration regulations, including hefty penalties and entry bans for foreign nationals who overstay their visas.
The Interior Ministry has set a grace period ending July 31, during which overstayers can regularise their status via a newly launched online amnesty portal without incurring fines.
Interior Minister Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo made the announcement during a stakeholder event at the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) headquarters in Abuja, highlighting key reforms in international travel processes.
$15 Daily overstay fine, up to 10-year entry ban
Under the new guidelines, visitors who remain in Nigeria beyond their visa expiry will be charged a $15 daily surcharge.
Those who overstay by more than six months face a five-year re-entry ban, while those exceeding one year could receive a 10-year ban.
The amnesty portal, launched in July, allows holders of expired single-entry visas, visa-on-arrival permits, or expatriate residence cards to legalise their stay online by submitting required documentation without visiting immigration offices.
Tunji-Ojo urged diplomats to encourage their nationals to use the platform before the deadline. “Once the amnesty period is over, we will implement the law 100 percent,” he warned.
Over 14000 e-Visa applications processed in six weeks
Tunji-Ojo praised the early success of Nigeria’s newly introduced e-visa system, which processed over 14,000 applications in its first six weeks.
He acknowledged early technical glitches but assured diplomats and stakeholders that improvements were ongoing.
“I can tell you that within the first six weeks of the e-visa, we were able to process over 14,000 visa applications,” the minister said, beaming with pride. “Within six weeks.”
“So, by any standard in the world, that is a pass mark. It is a huge one.”
He however cautioned that “there will be a penalty for overstaying in Nigeria. Our laws are not meant to be abused. Our laws are meant to be respected. And wherever you are from, once you are in Nigeria, you must respect the laws of Nigeria.”
N1 billion saved for discontinuing physical archiving of passport
The visa amnesty and e-visa initiatives form part of a broader immigration reform that began in April.
A key milestone was the termination of a costly physical archiving contract in late 2023, saving the government nearly ₦1 billion annually. Passport and visa documentation are now fully digitised.
“We cancelled the physical presentation [and] manual archiving that was costing us almost a billion a year.”
“It gives us the opportunity to verify those documents ahead of time, so the integrity of our foundational data is better enhanced…saving us almost a billion naira every year,” he said.
As of May 2025, 99 percent of passport applications were being processed digitally, with biometric capture and booklet collection streamlined into 20-minute slots.
A backlog of 204,000 passports was cleared in late 2024, and a “contactless” renewal option using selfie-style facial scans was launched by April 2025.
Automated passports “cured the madness of scarcity” and corruption
According to Tunji-Ojo, the drive to automate passports has “cured the madness of scarcity” and, along with it, the corruption that was previously encouraged by desperate applicants.
“Years ago, people waited months and paid touts N200,000, sometimes N500,000, for a N100,000 booklet,” he recalled, adding, “If you want to kill corruption, kill scarcity.”
He announced that within the next week, the electronic Temporary Work Permit and the electronic Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card would be operational.
According to the minister, the e-visa system would promote economic expansion.
“To me, when somebody needs a visa to Nigeria, and all he is looking for is who knows the minister, who knows the CG Immigration, who knows the permanent secretary, that is not how to grow a country. That is the truth.”
“You must make it easy while not compromising national security. There must be a strategy. So, the e-visa, I want to assure you, by the grace of God, is here to stay,” he stated.
The minister announced an end to the past abuse of the TWP system in relation to the impending e-CERPAC and TWP.
“That era when people will come on TWP almost for free, keep renewing over and over, just to evade the law, is gone. So, for us, TWP is automated just like CERPAC is already automated,” he stated.