Nigeria High Commission to Refund £50 to Applicants Charged £70 for UK Passport Intervention

The Nigeria high commission in the United Kingdom (UK) says it will refund £50 to applicants who paid a £70 administrative fee for the passport intervention, bringing the charge to the standard £20.

The high commission announced the refund in a notice published on its website on Friday.

The move comes after the high commission reduced the fee for the ongoing passport intervention from £70 to £20 following protests and scrutiny over the charge.

The administrative fee was initially fixed at £20 by the administration of the late President Muhammadu Buhari during a similar intervention.

However, the high commission charged £70 without approval from the ministry of foreign affairs, as well as £150 for lost passports.

Officials involved told TheCable that the Nigerian high commission demanded an additional payment to facilitate the process in order to “generate revenue”.

However, the reduced passport intervention fee still conflicts with the separate £20 administrative charge stipulated by the Buhari administration. The commission also charged a different administrative fee of £150 for lost passports.

‘NO ADDITIONAL CHARGES’

Following the protests by Nigerians in the UK, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, minister of interior, said he was concerned about the inconvenience surrounding the passport intervention exercise.

Tunji-Ojo also denied that applicants were required to pay separate administrative fees.

In a statement issued on Friday, Akinsola Akinlabi, NIS public relations officer, said the applicable fees remain $162 for a five-year validity passport booklet and $242 for a 10-year validity booklet.

Akinlabi said despite the initial challenges experienced on the first day of the commencement, the exercise was progressing smoothly at the London and Manchester centres.

The NIS spokesperson urged eligible applicants to book appointments for the special intervention exercise through the website of the Nigeria high commission website but reiterated that “no additional charges are required to participate in the intervention exercise”.

Akinlabi said within the first four days of the exercise, 1477 Nigerians were successfully processed and enrolled.

“Over half of those enrolled have already had their passports produced and dispatched to their respective addresses,” he added.

The NIS spokesperson said in response to the high turnout and interest, Tunji-Ojo approved an extension of the exercise in London and Manchester from September 19 to October 3.

Akinlabi said further information regarding the extended dates, participating locations and appointment procedures would be communicated through the official channels of both the NIS and Nigeria high commission.