How do you get your Nigerian e-passport?
Since 2010, the Nigerian international passport has been categorized into two types: the standard e-passport or the official e-passport (for government officials).
You should note that the international passport is different from the ECOWAS travel certificate which effectively enables one to travel within the fifteen states that make up ECOWAS.
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The Nigerian Immigration Service has actually striven to ease the process of procuring travel documents in recent years in consistence with the fast-changing digital bubble within which we all find ourselves in today. We will be breaking the process of snagging a passport down to seven straight-forward steps. A laptop or a phone with internet connectivity (as in data oh) will do for the most part.
Step by Step
- Log on to the NIS service portal. Once there on the page, click on “Passport” and under the emerging tab, click “Apply for fresh passport”. You will be directed to new tab where you will be asked to specify the kind of passport you are applying for i.e. standard or official. If you are not a government or applying in that capacity, then you should select “standard e-passport” and then also select your processing country wherever you are. Click on “Start Application”.
- Fill in the required info in their appropriate fields and accurately too (to avoid stories that touch because correcting any wrong details will cost money).
- Upon the completion of the application form, click on “I ACCEPT FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS FORM”. You will also be able to view a preview copy of the form you filled on this page.
- You will be issued an application ID and reference number on the application preview. Make sure to check again that the details are correct at this point.
- Print out the application and then head to the selected office of the NIS for payment and passport interview. Do note that the Nigerian Immigration Service directs that all payments be made online as physical cash will not be accepted.
- Make sure to attach to your application the following:
i. Letter of Identification from local government/state of origin
ii. Birth certificate or age declaration affidavit
iii. Marriage certificate (if applicable)
iv. Guarantor’s form sworn before a commissioner of oaths, High Court judge or magistrate (with photocopy of data page of Guarantor’s Nigerian e-passport and one passport-size photograph of the Guarantor)
vi. Name change affidavit (if applicable)
vii. Two recent passport-size photographs
viii. Proof of payment
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If a minor is involved (under 18):
ix. Letter of consent from both parents if applicant is a minor under age 16 (valid court order if one parent is unavailable)
x. Evidence of Nigerian citizenship of parent/s
xi. One passport-size photograph (signed on reverse side by consenting parent/s)
xii. Birth certificate
Note: If the said minor is adopted, a court order, as well as letter of approval from the state Ministry of Women and Child Development Services, will also be required.
Offline options:
There are also offline options for prospective applicants wherein agents are the go-between. However, you should be warned that the process becomes, for one thing, much more tenuous and for another, applicants are much more vulnerable to scams.
Sources:
Travel Start
Nigerian Immigration Service
Nigerian Infopedia
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