The federal government has listed four main reasons for raising the fees of the Nigerian international passport, effective from September 1, 2024.
In a circular released on Saturday, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) said the rise in fees was based on four major reasons and considerations by the agency.
Recall that Nairametrics earlier reported that the NIS has announced an upward revision of passport fees for Nigerians residing within the country.
Specifically, the fee for a 32-page passport booklet with a 5-year validity will rise from N35,000 to N50,000. Additionally, the cost of a 64-page passport booklet with a 10-year validity will increase from N70,000 to N100,000.
This announcement sparked a significant backlash from Nigerians, who are already grappling with the high cost of living and other economic hardships. Many have criticized the government’s decision, deeming it insensitive to the struggles of the average citizen.
In response to the public outcry, the NIS issued a circular explaining the reasons behind the increase in passport fees across various categories.
Reasons for Increasing Passport Fees
In the statement released on Saturday, NIS said:
4 Reasons for the increase in the price of the Nigerian standard passport:
- Improvement in Passport standard and quality, ensuring that the Nigerian Passport continues to maintain the ICAO Standard.
- To address the cost of materials and production given current realities.
- With the new fees, the NIS will create more Passport front offices and biometrics centres, thereby increasing access to our facilities, decongesting the already existing centres and improving Passport production turnaround time.
- The recent increase in Passport fees would also help the Service actualise its drive for the complete domestication of Nigeria Passport booklets.
“This is in furtherance of the #RenewedHope Agenda of Mr. President to build local content,” NIS added.
What you should know
Nigeria’s passport system has undergone significant improvements, particularly under the leadership of the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
- In August 2023, Tunji-Ojo directed the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) to clear a backlog of over 200,000 pending passport applications within two weeks.
- By October 2023, the NIS announced that it had successfully cleared the backlog, encouraging Nigerians to collect their passports from the designated offices.
- Further advancing the passport system, the government announced in May 2024 that home delivery of passports would commence in June, thereby eliminating the need for Nigerians to visit immigration offices. This move is part of a broader effort to streamline passport issuance and improve accessibility.
However, despite these advancements, Nigeria’s global passport ranking remains low. According to the 2024 Henley Passport Index, Nigeria is ranked 95th, tied with Sudan, reflecting the limited travel freedoms available to Nigerian passport holders.
