Reports recently circulated that Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Turkey had revoked previous privileges for Nigerian passport holders, including visa-on-arrival, e-visa, and outright passport issuance.
However, the Turkish Embassy has clarified that there is no visa ban on Nigerians, stating that the reports were false and misleading.
Speaking to journalists, the personal secretary to the Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria, Wunmi Evelyn, clarified that while Turkey no longer allows Nigerian passport holders to obtain its e-visa, which was previously a seamless process, this does not translate to a visa ban on Nigerians.
What the ambassador said:
“There is no visa ban on Nigerian passport holders,” Evelyn said.
“As it is well-known, if there will be any update regarding rules and procedures of the policies and practices of any country, these updates are officially notified to the respective foreign ministries, and statements/announcements are issued by the embassies,” she noted.
She stressed that visa applications are evaluated on a case-by-case basis. If an applicant has previously been denied a visa, they should correct any mistakes made in the initial application and improve the quality of their application, provided there is no fraud or forged documents detected.
“Besides, he or she should update the documentation and refrain from supplying old versions of required supporting documents,” she added.
Despite being the most populous black country in the world and boasting one of the largest economies in Africa, Nigeria holds one of the ten least powerful African passports in 2024.
