FG to airlines: do not fly passengers without Visi valid in Nigeria – Thage

By Victor Osula, Abuja

The Federal Government has warned the airlines against flying passengers in Nigeria without valid views, declaring that the country will not act as a test terrain for the practices that are not tolerated elsewhere.

The Minister of the Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, published the warning on Friday during a awareness program on the new E-Visa policy organized by the Nigerian immigration service.

He said that the warning followed the consultations with the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo and the General Manager of the Nigerian Authority for Civil Aviation, Captain Chris Najomo.

“We have problems with the airlines that bring passengers to Nigeria without visas. We talked to the Avvation Minister and the DG NCAA in this regard. It is unacceptable,” said Tunji-Ojo.

“You can’t do it in any other country. If I try to travel in the United Kingdom without a visa, British Airways will not make me get on board. They must first see my visa. Recently, we had to report people because they arrived without valid views.

He added: “With the support of the Nicaa, we will begin the full application of the existing regulations. Any airline that brings passengers without visas will be sanctioned. Nigeria is not a place for such experiments.”

The minister stressed that the application will be severe and coherent, who warn the operators of the airlines to check the state of the visa before allowing passengers on board.

He said: “How can someone come from Europe or Asia without a visa and expect to resolve it on arrival? This does not happen in any serious country. We are interesting to airlines: while we do business in Nigeria, they respect Nigerian laws. Unless a passenger comes from a country without visas, they must have a visa before getting on board for Nigeria.”

Tunji-Ojo revealed that from 22 May 2025, a total of 5,814 visa applications had been processed with the new steering system, with 5,617 approved, 66 rejected and 62 interrogated. He stressed that each application undergoes verification, including checks with hotels listed by the candidates.

“We are building a watertight holding system. If you don’t qualify, you will not get a visa. Now let’s check the details sending the candidates, including physically hotel reservations,” he said.

In his observations, the general manager of the NCAA, captain Chris Najomo, described the introduction of e-visa and related landing and exit systems as a serious leap in the efforts of Nigeria to improve the facilitation of air travel while maintaining the safety of aviation and operational efficiency.

Post views:
75