The first time I
traveled out of the country, we had to make a pit stop at Qatar because we were using Qatar Airways. So imagine my surprise when someone I knew took a Kenya Airways flight and needed a transit visa. It got me thinking why do people need a transit visa and others don’t? Is it because we are Nigerians? Here are a few things you should know about a transit visa.
What is a Transit Visa?
A transit visa allows its holder to pass through a country while en route to another country. In other words, it is a non-immigrant visa granting temporal access into a country being traveled through due to flight schedules. The key thing to note about transit visas is that the country you are going through is not your final destination. For instance, if you are going to London through Air France, chances are the airline will stop over at Paris briefly before making it to London.
The time between your flights determines whether or not you need a transit visa.
Visitors’ Visa versus Transit Visas
Sometimes, the reason for your stay in a country may determine if you need a Transit or Visitors’ visa. A visitor’s visa is also called a
Tourist Visa.
For some countries, a visitors’ visa is required for tourists who want to leave the airport for a city tour or spend the night. While some countries prefer to issue a transit visa for that purpose instead. Although, some travellers prefer to sleep in the airport pending their next flight to avoid the extra expenses.
Meanwhile, other countries require you get a transit visa if you will spend over 4 hours at their airport terminal. Some transit visas allow you to enter into the country for about 72 hours while others restrict you to staying within the airport or a specific transit area close to the airport.
Nigerians and Transit visas
– Nigerians require a transit visa when going through US to Canada. They also need it when going through Australia or any Schengen country’s airport.
– If a Nigerian has a valid resident permit, national long-stay visa or Schengen visa from the US, UK, Japan and other EU or Schengen country, there is no need for an airport transit visa
– To get a transit visa, apply to the embassy of the country you will travel through. Or you can fill out the transit visa form on the embassy’s website to get an electronic transit visa.
People travelling through Nigeria require a Nigerian transit visa; except their country is part of ECOWAS.
Click here for details on requirements and how to apply for a Nigerian Transit Visa.
You can increase the list of countries visited on your bucket list by getting a transit visa. This works best if the time lag between your next flight is over 10 hours. When you get out of the airport, use the time wisely to soak up the sights and sounds of that country before your next flight.
