US increases visa cost for Nigerians, says Naija Visa costs is also high

The United States Embassy in Nigeria says effective from Thursday, August 29, 2019, Nigerians applying for tourism, student and business visas will not only pay the N59, 200 fee but will have to pay an extra $110 (N40, 700) after the visa has been issued to them bringing the total cost to N99, 900.

However, applicants who are denied visas would not need to pay the extra N40, 700.

Applicants seeking the L1 Visa (work permit) will pay an extra N112, 100 if given visas while those applying for H4 Visa (dependency/spousal) will pay an extra N66, 600.

The US Embassy adopts the rate of N370/$1 for Nigerians which is higher than both the official rate and the black market rate.

The increment also comes amid complaints from hundreds of Nigerian visa applicants that they had not been able to secure US visa appointment dates despite making payments for visas.

It lamented that Americans were paying too much to secure Nigerian visas and thus the US government decided to retaliate.

The US embassy said it had been holding talks with the Nigerian government to reduce the fee but the Federal Government refused to accede to its requests.

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“If a country does not treat United States nationals seeking non-immigrant visas in a reciprocal manner, the Secretary of State shall adjust the visa validity period, fee schedule, or other treatment to match the treatment of United States nationals by the foreign country, to the extent practicable,” the executive order read.

The new reciprocity fee is the latest in a string of moves by the Trump administration which targets Nigerians and other Africans which are having an on-ground effect of cultivating fake news and fear.

After reportedly considering visa clampdown measures including issuing visas for shorter validity periods for countries whose nationals have high rates of overstaying visas (Nigerians were the highest ranked African country for US visa overstays in 2018), the US indefinitely suspended its interview waiver process for visa renewals for Nigerian applicants in May.

https://qz.com/africa/1696033/trump-white-house-us-increases-visa-fees-for-nigerians/
https://punchng.com/breaking-us-increases-tourism-visa-cost-to-n99-900-for-nigerians-blames-fg/