Many Nigerians who have been waiting for appointments or have been forced to patronised agents, commonly also referred to by the US Embassy in Nigeria as ‘Touts’ have slammed the US approach to visa appointments in Africa and most especially in Nigeria as shameful and disgraceful.
The above was the position and reaction of some Nigerians and agents who spoke to www.africantraveltimes.com and pleaded anonymity blamed the US Embassy for all the chaos and extortion surrounding its visa appointments system.
This came following the US Embassy press release yesterday Monday 27th of February 2023 that effective March 1, 2023, the U.S. Mission will increase visitor visa validity from 24 months to 60 months for Nigerians who want to enter the United States temporarily for business and/or tourism.
The visa validity extension according to the press release would allow Nigerians to use the visa for 60 months to make short trips to the United States for tourism or business purposes before having to renew their visa and that the visa application fee, currently USD160, will not increase because of the increased visa validity period.
It also noted that the Increasing visa validity is one of several initiatives taken by the United States to reduce visa appointments wait times in Nigeria and that the U.S. Mission would continue to offer No-Interview Visa Renewals to those who meet the eligibility criteria.
Appointments for No-Interview Visa Renewals are readily available.
No-Interview Visa Renewal
You may be eligible for a visa renewal without an interview if your application is for a B1/B2, F, M, J (academic only), H, L, or C1/D (combined only) visa, AND you meet each of the following criteria:
You are physically present in Nigeria.
Your previous visa was issued in Nigeria.
Your previous visa is in the same classification as your current application.
Your previous visa was a full-validity, multiple-entry visa.
Your previous visa expired within the last 48 months or will expire in the next 3 months from the date of application.
You have all your passports covering the entire period since receiving the previous visa and the passport with the most recent visa.
You have never been arrested or convicted of any crime or offense in the United States, even if you later received a waiver or pardon.
You have never worked without authorization or remained beyond your permitted time in the United States.
Please see our website at https://ng.usembassy.gov/visas/nonimmigrant-visas/ for further information.
If you are qualified based on the above criteria, visit https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ng to start your application.
Please note that processing times for the program are expected to be up to two months and you will not be able to retrieve your passport during that time.
Each applicant must individually meet the criteria; minors can apply without an interview only if they meet the eligibility criteria on their own.
Emergency Appointments
If you have a life-or-death emergency, you may request an expedited, in-person interview; however, to accommodate No-Interview Visa Renewals, appointments will be very limited.
Business travel, conferences, weddings, and graduations are not considered emergencies. If you have an emergency and need to travel immediately, please follow the guidance provided at https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ng or +234-1-227-8955 to request an emergency appointment.
Special Note: Third parties unaffiliated with U.S. Embassy Abuja and Consulate General Lagos may seek to take advantage of various visa services to target visa applicants with fraudulent offers or claims.
Applicants should fill out their own forms and make their appointments themselves via the official websites.
As future opportunities for Interview Waiver appointments become available, they will be communicated via our website.
Remember to rely on information only from genuine sources: https://travel.state.gov, https://ng.usembassy.gov/visas/, and https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ng. Avoid becoming the victim of a scam!
Meanwhile, due to the shambolic nature of how the US handles visa appointments in Africa, including not giving priority to journalists to the extent that they cannot secure/renew their visas for major international assignments has led to agents feeding fat on potential and genuine travellers across Africa.
In Nigeria, agents are charging between $700 to $1000 US dollars to secure appointments. Most embarrassingly, these agents are getting things done because they noted the US embassies are deliberately hoarding appointment dates across Africa.
Some of the agents who spoke to a reader of www.africantraveltimes.com expressed disappointment that the US Embassy in Nigeria seems to enjoy the chaos it has created around visa appointments.
The source noted and boasted that, pay me the money and you will get your appointment in a matter of days.
While the US Embassy’s extension announcement of two years visa validity to five years looks like it was its deliberate action, which is far from the truth, but a long running battle between the Nigerian Government over its reciprocity visa regime that the United States of America [USA] is just complying with.
By Lucky George [Lagos-Nigeria] [editor@africantraveltimes.com]