{"id":14738,"date":"2025-07-01T17:04:39","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T17:04:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nigeriastandardnewspaper.com\/a\/?p=14738"},"modified":"2025-07-01T17:04:39","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T17:04:39","slug":"federal-govt-warns-foreigners-we-will-route-you-out-from-hiding-to-face-stiff-penalty-if-you-overstay-your-visa-in-nigeria","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nigeriastandardnewspaper.com\/a\/federal-govt-warns-foreigners-we-will-route-you-out-from-hiding-to-face-stiff-penalty-if-you-overstay-your-visa-in-nigeria\/","title":{"rendered":"FEDERAL Govt Warns Foreigners: We Will Route You Out from Hiding to Face Stiff Penalty If You Overstay your Visa in Nigeria"},"content":{"rendered":"

*Set August 1, 2025, as deadline to begin issuing stiff sanctions, enforcing Immigration law <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

*Opened an online immigration amnesty portal in July to allow affected individuals to regularise their stay before the penalties take effect<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

*\u201cOnce the amnesty period is over, we will implement the law 100 per cent and, of course, there will be a penalty for overstaying in Nigeria\u201d-Interior Minister, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

*BY GEORGE ELIJAH OTUMU\/Executive EDITOR & Group Managing Director, NAIJA STANDARD NEWSPAPER Inc USA<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

FOR FOREIGNERS who are undocumented residing anywhere in Nigeria, or who overstay their Visas, a stiff penalty awaits them, if they are unable to regularise their immigration paperwork latest August 1, 2025, as Immigration laws in Africa\u2019s most populous black nation will be enforced to the letters.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The Federal Government promised to ensure the deadline begins after the deadline by issuing tough sanctions to foreigners who have overstayed their visas.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

However, it opened an online immigration amnesty portal in July to allow affected individuals to regularise their stay before the penalties take effect.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOnce the amnesty period is over, we will implement the law 100 per cent and, of course, there will be a penalty for overstaying in Nigeria,\u201d Interior Minister, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said on Monday.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

He disclosed this at a stakeholders\u2019 sensitisation on major Nigeria Immigration Service innovations in international passenger travel, at the Service headquarters in Abuja.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

He also said the recently launched electronic visa regime has processed over 14,000 applications within its first six weeks.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

He told members of the diplomatic corps, \u201cPlease tell your people to take advantage of the amnesty,\u201d adding that once the grace period lapsed, the law would be enforced 100 per cent.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI plead with you, we are opening the immigration amnesty portal in July, I think within the next one or two days. Please, for the benefit of our diplomatic corps, encourage your people to take advantage of it.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOnce the amnesty period is over, we will implement the law 100 per cent, and of course, there will be a penalty for overstaying in Nigeria.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur laws are not meant to be abused.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Our laws are meant to be respected. And wherever you are from, once you are in Nigeria, you must respect the laws of Nigeria,\u201d he affirmed.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The amnesty is part of a broader reform package first unveiled in April and due to take effect in two phases. From May 1, the Interior Ministry introduced a $15 daily surcharge for each day a visitor remains in the country beyond the date stamped in their passport.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

However, it simultaneously offered a three-month moratorium-stretching to July 31-to allow people to regularise their papers without paying the fine.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Beginning August 1, anyone still out of status faces not only the accrued surcharge but a five-year re-entry ban for overstays of six months and a 10-year ban for those who remain a year or more, according to the implementation guidelines published by the Nigeria Immigration Service.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The new portal enables holders of expired visa-on-arrival permits, lapsed single-entry visas, or overdue expatriate residence cards to apply online for a stay permit, upload supporting documents, and receive clearance without needing to visit an immigration office.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Tunji-Ojo also announced that the Federal Government saved nearly N1bn annually after scrapping a contract for the physical archiving of passport and visa documents in late 2023.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

He said, \u201cWe cancelled the physical presentation [and] manual archiving that was costing us almost a billion a year.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt gives us the opportunity to verify those documents ahead of time, so the integrity of our foundational data is better enhanced\u2026saving us almost a billion naira every year,\u201d he said.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The e-passport automation drives formally began on January 8, 2024, when the interior ministry ordered the NIS to phase out paper files and middlemen and route all new or renewal requests through a revamped web portal.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Applicants at home and abroad now complete an online form, pay electronically and upload birth certificates, proof of address and passport photos.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The portal\u2019s back-end conducts preliminary security checks, allowing immigration officers to flag anomalies long before an applicant appears at the capture centre, the service said.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

A public advisory circulated to Nigerian missions abroad urged would-be travellers to \u201ccheck requirements, test photos and book appointments\u201d entirely online, eliminating the queues and ad hoc fees that once plagued the process.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In late 2024, the ministry cleared a backlog of 204,000 passports and set an April 2025 deadline for \u201ccontactless\u201d renewals that require only a selfie-style facial scan instead of fingerprint pads.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

By May 2025, officials stated that 99 per cent of passport issuance was end-to-end digital, with the remaining tasks-biometric capture and booklet pick-up-compressed into 20-minute slots.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Tunji-Ojo said the passport automation drive has \u201ccured the madness of scarcity\u201d and, with it, the petty graft once fuelled by desperate applicants.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cYears ago, people waited months and paid touts N200,000, sometimes N500,000, for a N100,000 booklet,\u201d he recalled, adding, \u201cIf you want to kill corruption, kill scarcity.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

He revealed that the electronic Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card and the electronic Temporary Work Permit would go live within the next week.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI can tell you that within the first six weeks of the e-visa, we were able to process over 14,000 visa applications. Within six weeks.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSo, by any standard in the world, that is a pass mark. It is a huge one and, of course, those little hitches, I tell you, within the next one to two weeks, will be history. We will correct them,\u201d Tunji-Ojo said.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The former lawmaker gave a glimpse of the backstage work: \u201cWe are already working. Even yesterday in my house, the CGIS was there. Technological partners were at my house. The DCG visa was in my house. All of us were in my house.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe worked for hours yesterday, Sunday, even in my conference room at home. We were working because we understand that when you are in the process of innovation, there is no room, there is no opportunity for you to close your eyes. You must make sure it works. We are ready for the challenge.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The minister explained that the e-visa system would spur economic growth.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTo 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.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou 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,\u201d he stated.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Regarding the upcoming e-CERPAC and TWP, the minister declared an end to the previous misuse of the TWP system.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat 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,\u201d he stated.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The Comptroller General of Immigration Service, Kemi Nandap, said the new visa regime introduced several innovative services, including the e-Visa Application Channel, e-CERPAC, Landing and Exit Cards, and Temporary Work Permits.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe already installed e-Gates at our major airports and commissioned command and control centre are positioned to house and harness these technologies.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThese digital solutions leverage technology to streamline processes, enhance security, and improve the overall experience for travellers and stakeholders,\u201d she said.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

According to Nandap, \u201cThe e-Visa system allows for seamless online applications, eliminating the need for physical visits to immigration offices.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

She further added, \u201cThe e-CERPAC integrates residence permits into a digital document, simplifying processes for foreign nationals residing in Nigeria.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur Temporary Work Permit has also been digitised, reducing processing times and increasing efficiency.\u201d <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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