Immigration Regulatory Updates (July 2025)

This edition highlights key immigration policy changes affecting Nigerian travellers, including Kenya’s Electronic Travel Authorisation (eTA) exemptions (excluding Nigeria), the United States’ new single-entry visa rule and visa integrity fee, and renewed UAE visa restrictions. These developments reflect growing global focus on security, migration control, and diplomatic shifts, with implications for individuals, businesses, and mobility stakeholders.

NIS Announces Amnesty Window for Visa Overstayers to Regularise Immigration Status

On 5 July 2025, the Nigeria Immigration Service (the “NIS”), under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Interior, announced the launch of an Expired Visa Amnesty Initiative. This initiative is part of broader efforts to enhance compliance with the New Visa Regime and to reinforce a secure and transparent migration system in Nigeria.

The Amnesty Initiative provides foreign nationals currently residing in Nigeria with expired immigration status an opportunity to regularise their stay without facing penalties. It commenced on 1 May 2025. Initially, the Federal Government had announced a general three-month grace period (1 May – 1 August 2025) for expatriates to regularise their immigration documentation under the new Expatriate Administration System (EAS). However, this Expired Visa Amnesty Initiative specifically extends the window until 30 September 2025 for a specialised category of foreign nationals, those who have overstayed their visas or violated visa conditions.

This was discussed in detail in our update here.