Odimmegwa Johnpeter/Abuja
The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has clarified that Nigerians applying for international passports in the United Kingdom are required to pay only the approved official fees of $150 for a five-year passport and $230 for a 10-year passport, excluding applicable bank charges.Africans & Diaspora
The clarification followed concerns over inconveniences experienced by Nigerians in the UK during an ongoing special passport intervention exercise.
In a statement issued by the Minister’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Alao Babatunde, Tunji-Ojo said the intervention was introduced to provide additional options for Nigerians in the UK seeking to process their passport applications.
The Minister stressed that neither the Ministry of Interior nor the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) had introduced additional charges beyond the approved passport fees.
“It is therefore necessary to clarify that this process does not come with extra cost different from the official fees of $150 and $230 for a five-year and ten-year validity passports respectively, exclusive of bank charges,” the Minister said.
Tunji-Ojo added that consultations were ongoing with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to address the challenges being experienced by Nigerians during the exercise.Africans & Diaspora
He said the government remained committed to improving passport services for Nigerians both at home and abroad.
The Minister also advised applicants to take advantage of the contactless biometric passport application system, which allows eligible applicants to complete the biometric component of the process through a digital system.
The clarification comes amid concerns from Nigerians in the UK over passport application and processing arrangements under the special intervention exercise.
The Ministry said efforts were ongoing to ensure that the difficulties experienced during the process were resolved.
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