IN A SPAN OF TWO WEEKS 32,462 HAVE SUMMITED THEIR APPLICATION FOR PASSPORT

Between January 8 and 21, 2024, a total of 32,462 individuals have applied for passports and submitted their documents through the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) website. Out of these applications, 15,113 have been approved for biometric capture and production, constituting fifty percent of the total applications.

The surge in passport applications is attributed to the trend of Nigerians seeking better opportunities abroad, often referred to as ‘japa.’

Caroline Adepoju, the Comptroller-General of the Immigration Service, provided an overview of passport applications for 2024 during her visit to Ikoyi and Alausa passport offices. She highlighted that out of the 32,462 applications, 11,505 were awaiting approval, and 3,406 applicants who made payments were yet to book appointments. Additionally, 1,438 applications were queried for various reasons.

Adepoju stated, “50 percent of the total applications have been successfully approved for biometric capture, production, and issuance, 35 percent awaits approval, 11 percent made payments but are yet to book appointments, and only four percent of total applications were queried. When queries are successfully answered, the applications return to the queue and are subsequently approved for biometric acquisition, production, and issuance.”

She emphasized that the introduction of the automation of passport applications is not a new concept but clarified that now supporting documents are uploaded online. Adepoju explained that the automation aims to streamline the application process, reduce human interface, and address issues of extortion by touts during the application process. The Immigration boss urged Nigerians to be patient and allow the NIS to perfect the process.

Source: Techeconomy