Nigeria tourist visa (F5A): requirements, stay and fees

NIS describes F5A as the visa for people visiting Nigeria purely for tourism. It is open to citizens of all countries except ECOWAS member states and countries that have signed a visa abolition or waiver agreement with Nigeria, whose nationals can enter without it.

Everyone except ECOWAS citizens and nationals of countries with a visa waiver agreement needs the visa. If your trip mixes sightseeing with meetings, the business classes F4A or F4B are the correct choice; visiting relatives fits Visiting Visa F6A, which requires a host who accepts immigration responsibility.

The NIS Information Centre lists a passport valid for at least six months, a return ticket, a hotel reservation or the address of a host in Nigeria, and evidence of sufficient funds in the form of a 180-day bank statement. The Service Level Agreement also asks for a passport-size photograph.

Children under 18 travelling with an adult must provide a birth certificate and a parental consent letter. Keep copies of all documents in your hand luggage, since the officer at the port of entry may ask to see the ticket, accommodation details or funds again.

Visa fees are reciprocal and listed by country in Appendix I of the NIS Service Level Agreement; F5A is charged at the single-entry rate for your nationality. British citizens pay USD 193 and US citizens USD 160. The fee is paid online by card during the application.

NIS lets you file F5A either on the e-Visa portal or through the embassy route. On the e-Visa you register, choose Tourism, upload the documents and pay; the target decision time is 48 hours when there is no local objection, and the approval letter is emailed with a QR code.

On the embassy route you complete the form at visa.immigration.gov.ng and attend an interview and biometric capture at a Nigerian mission, after which the target is 10 days.

The visa is valid for 90 days from issue, and you may stay up to 30 days in a single entry within that period. It is strictly for leisure: NIS rules out employment and does not allow extensions. Leaving Nigeria ends the visa, so a second trip needs a new application. If you expect to return several times, ask about multiple-entry classes, which are tied to reciprocity.