In a statement, the United States Embassy in Nigeria has said that, effective from Thursday, August 29, 2019, Nigerians applying for tourism, student and business (non-immigrant) visas will not only pay the N59,200 fee but will have to pay an extra $110 (N40,700) after the visa has been issued to them bringing the total cost to N99,900.
This change in visa cost to Nigerians going to US is like a pay-back. The US says it has called on Nigerian govt to reduce the cost of visa from US to Nigeria but Nigeria has not yielded any ground. The new fee is to leverage with the Nigerian visa cost.
The statement said: “Effective worldwide on August 29, Nigerian citizens will be required to pay a visa issuance fee, or reciprocity fee, for all approved applications for non-immigrant visas in B, F, H1B, I, L, and R visa classifications.
“The reciprocity fee will be charged in addition to the non-immigrant visa application fee, also known as the MRV fee, which all applicants pay at the time of application. Nigerian citizens whose applications for a non-immigrant visa are denied will not be charged the new reciprocity fee. Both reciprocity and MRV fees are non-refundable, and their amounts vary based on visa classification.
“U.S. law requires U.S. visa fees and validity periods to be based on the treatment afforded to U.S. citizens by foreign governments, insofar as possible. Visa issuance fees are implemented under the principle of reciprocity: when a foreign government imposes additional visa fees on U.S. citizens, the United States will impose reciprocal fees on citizens of that country for similar types of visas.
Nationals of a number of countries worldwide are currently required to pay this type of fee after their non-immigrant visa application is approved.
“The total cost for a U.S. citizen to obtain a visa to Nigeria is currently higher than the total cost for a Nigerian to obtain a comparable visa to the United States. The new reciprocity fee for Nigerian citizens is meant to eliminate that cost difference.”
The statement noted that since early 2018, the U.S. government has engaged the Nigerian government to request that the Nigerian government change the fees charged to U.S. citizens for certain visa categories.
It said after eighteen months of review and consultations, the government of Nigeria has not changed its fee structure for U.S. citizen visa applicants, requiring the U.S. Department of State to enact new reciprocity fees in accordance with its visa laws.
The US noted that the complete reciprocity fee schedule, organised by visa classification, included B1- $110, B2-$110, B2/B2-$110,
It added that the reciprocity tables displayed on travel.state.gov would be updated to reflect the changes above. (Flags: 123rf)