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Tag: Visa-On-Arrival

  • NIS addresses visa-on-arrival application process

    NIS addresses visa-on-arrival application process

    The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has addressed concerns surrounding Visa-On-Arrival (VOA) applications, prompted by recent payment platform upgrades by Nigerian financial institutions.

    The NIS Comptroller General, Kemi Nandap said this in a statement signed by the Service Public Relations Officer (SPRO) Kenneth Udo on Saturday in Abuja.

    Nandap assured the public that all NIS platforms were functional, advising applicants to utilise online applications from home and make payments using bank cards for seamless transactions.

    “The attention of the Service has been drawn to recent challenges faced by the public due to systems upgrade on payment platforms by Nigerian Financial Institutions.

    “The public is to note that all platforms of the Service are functional.

    “Consequently, we advises Visa applicants to apply for Visa-on-Arrival (VOA) in the comfort of their homes, and make payment online as provided on the portal using their bank cards for ease of transaction.

    “Any request for information/enquiry about the Service should be directed to the Service official channels

    “Official website: www.immigration.gov.ng, voa.immigration.gov.ng, X: @nigimmigration
    Facebook: @nigimmigration, Instagram: @nigimmigration, Contact Center Number: 07053401399, 09121900655, 09121556359,”he said.

    The NIS boss assured the public of its firm commitment to continuously ease the process of acquiring Visa-On-Arrival (VOA).

  • VISA on arrival: Buhari launches Nigeria’s new visa policy

    VISA on arrival: Buhari launches Nigeria’s new visa policy

    President Muhammadu Buhari has officially launched a revised Nigeria Visa Policy (NVP), which has 79 visa classifications, one of which is the Visa on arrival.

    Presenting the document at the State House in Abuja, on Tuesday, Buhari said the new visa policy is intended to attract innovation, specialised skills and knowledge from abroad to complement local ones.

    He also said it is designed to enhance business opportunities and achieve African integration through the visas on arrival for holders of passports of African Union countries.

    The new policy favours all Africans with a valid passport who wish to come into the country for a short visit, for businesses and for tourism, as the Visa grants them legal stay for up to 90 days.

  • Just in: Senate summons Aregbesola over FG’s visa on arrival policy

    The Senate on Tuesday summoned the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbosola, to appear before it with the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Immigration Service, Muhammed Babandede.

    Aregbesola and Babandede are to brief the Senate on Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters on latest visa on arrival policy for Africans visiting Nigeria by the Federal Government announced by President Muhammadu Buhari in Egypt.

    The invitation of the Minister followed a point of order raised by the Senator representing Ekiti North Senatorial District, Olubunmi Adetunmbi.

    Adetunmbi had drawn the attention of the Senate to the fact that the executive did not seek necessary amendments to extant laws by the National Assembly before the policy became operational.

    Buhari had in his speech during the Aswan Forum on peace and sustainable development in Egypt, said that African passport holders can apply for a visa upon arrival in the country, in a move aimed at encouraging free circulation of people on the continent.

    “We in Nigeria have already taken the strategic decision to bring down barriers that have hindered the free movement of our people within the continent by introducing the issuance of visa at the point of entry into Nigeria to all persons holding passports of African countries with effect from January 2020,” Buhari said.

    “We should furthermore promote free trade within and amongst Africa and Africans especially now that we have launched the African Free Trade Area Agreement,” he added.

  • NIS clears air on visa on arrival for Africans policy

    NIS clears air on visa on arrival for Africans policy

    The Comptroller General, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Muhammed Babandede, has said the visa on arrival for holders of passports of African countries from January 2020 was to accelerate African Integration.

    A statement in Abuja by Sunday James, the NIS Public Relations Officer, quoted Babandede as saying the decision would remove barriers hindering free movement of people within the continent.

    “Nigeria’s strategic decision is taken to bring down barriers that have hindered free movement of our people within the continent by introducing the visa at the point of entry into Nigeria with effect from January 2020,” he said.

    Babandede assured Nigerians of the service’s commitment to high professionalism in delivering its services without compromising National Security.

    Babandede statement on Dec. 11, which announced the Federal Government’s decision to allow Africans into Nigeria without Visa from January 2020, had been greeted with mixed reactions by Nigerias with many expressing fears over its security implications.

  • Ease of doing business: FG to launch ‘visa-on-arrival’ policy for visitors

    Ease of doing business: FG to launch ‘visa-on-arrival’ policy for visitors

    Nigeria is gradually moving towards a “visa-on-arrival” regime as part of efforts to improve “Ease of doing business.

    Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama stated this on Tuesday at a meeting with his Namibian counterpart, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, in Windhoek, the Namibian capital.

    The two countries have also agreed to strengthen cooperation in areas that would be beneficial to them as well as the African continent.

    Onyeama said Nigeria is moving towards a “visa-on-arrival” regime as part of the policy of “Ease of doing business”.

    The minister added that “online applications will facilitate that, but it is still a work in progress”.

    He noted that they addressed issues regarding the issuance of visas to Namibians and Nigerians.

    “Any Namibian wishing to obtain a visa to Nigeria can apply and will be considered as was the case in the past. Once the requirements are met satisfactorily, such a person will be issued a visa. Same applies to a Nigerian wishing to go to Namibia,” he said.

    The meeting also agreed that any visa denial or deportation will not be stamped in the holder’s passport. Furthermore, consular meetings will be held quarterly to assess how things are progressing.

    He also said over the years, Nigeria has engaged with Namibia through the Technical Aid Corps (TAC), which is “one mechanism through which we support countries by sending out our brightest young professionals in various fields – medical, educational etc depending on the needs of the country for a period of time”.

    He reiterated his belief that the partnership being forged through the Joint Commission can “transform the lives of our peoples in the framework of the 2063 Agenda of the African Union (AU) and the 2030 Sustainable Development goals of the UN”.

    Diplomatic relations between Nigeria and Namibia date back to the March 2, 1990, following the country’s attainment of independence. Since then, relations have been warm and cordial owing to the role Nigeria played during Namibia’s liberation struggle with the provision of financial, material and logistical support for SWAPO.

  • Buhari’s Visa-On-Arrival policy yielding results, says Lai Mohammed

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said the Federal Government’s Visa-On-Arrival Policy has started yielding fruits, especially in the tourism sector which has been boosted by the policy.
    The Minister made the assertion in Abuja on Monday, when he received members of the Latin America Motorcyclists Association (LAMA), who are in Nigeria for a tour of heritage sites and other tourist attractions in the country.
    ”All our visitors here today got visa on arrival. That shows that the Federal Government’s visa-on-arrival policy is working,” he said.
    Alhaji Mohammed said the presence of the international bikers in Nigeria is a testimony to the fact that the Administration’s quest to promote the country’s cultural heritage and tourism sites is yielding fruits.
    ”As you tour Nigeria, under the ‘Rediscover Heritage Bikers Tour of Nigeria’, and visit historical heritage sites, you beam the searchlight on those sites for the world to see.
    “You will see these heritage sites for yourselves as you travel through our culturally-rich and diverse nation. These sites include museums, monuments, homes of national heroes and other tourist sites,” he said.
    The Minister therefore enlisted the support of the bikers to become Nigeria’s heritage ambassadors by spreading the news of the country’s hidden treasures and their experiences while in the country.
    In his remarks, the President of LAMA, Mr. Mario Nieves, said the group, which consists of members from 24 countries, is in Nigeria to rediscover the country’s culture and heritage as well as promote unity among the human race.
    “We are just a group of humble motorcyclists that decided to arrange and create some type of impact in our society. We believe that it is more important to be human than it is to be black or white or oriental or Indian, because we belong to the human race and we believe that we are all one people,” he said.
    Mr. Nieves said Nigeria has set a good example for them in humility, respect and hospitality, and that when they return to their respective countries, they will spread the good news about Nigeria.
    While giving a background on the tour, the Acting Director General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Mr. Abdulkarim Kadiri, said the bikers, from Brazil, US and Mexico, among others, and their Nigerian counterparts will tour 11 states of the Federation in order to rediscover Nigeria and its rich cultural heritage.