The Federal Government has reviewed the
visa processes for foreigners who wish to visit Nigeria for business
and tourism purposes with the aim of boosting the economy.
In a statement issued yesterday, by the
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said the
measures were part of the action plan for the ease of doing business
as well as efforts to boost tourism, within the overall context of
the Administration's economic diversification agenda.
''The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS)
has reviewed the requirements for Nigerian visas to make them more
customer friendly, and details of this review are available on the
NIS official website, www.immigration.gov.ng. types of visas
currently reviewed include Visa on Arrival (VoA) processes, Business
Visas, Tourist Visas and Transit Visas,'' the minister said.
Mohammed explained that business visas
are available for foreign travellers who wish to travel to Nigeria
for followings: Meetings, Conferences, Seminars, Contract
Negotiation, Marketing, Sales, Purchase and distribution of Nigerian
Goods, Trade Fairs, Job Interviews, Training of Nigerians,
Emergency/Relief work, Crew members, Staff of NGOs, Staff of INGOs,
researchers and musical concerts.
He said Tourist Visas are also
available to foreign travellers who wish to visit Nigeria for the
purpose of tourism or to visit family and friends while Nigeria Visa
on Arrival is a class of short visit visa issued at the port of
entry, and it is available to frequently-travelled High-Net-Worth
Investors and intending visitors who may not be able to obtain visa
at the Nigerian Missions/Embassies in their countries of residence
due to the absence of a Nigerian mission in those countries or
exigencies of urgent business travels.
Mohammed said other actions that have
been taken by the NIS for the ease of doing business and facilitation
of travelling for Nigerians and foreigners alike include the
harmonization of multiplicity of Airport Arrival and Departure
Form/Cards into a single form for all agencies of government to save
foreign visitors from the current frustrating practice of filling 3
different forms or more and the decentralization of Immigration
services to the State Commands
''Re-issuance of passports for change
of names due to marital reasons or lost cases have been decentralized
to all State Commands and Foreign Missions to save passport holders
from additional costs and inconvenience of travelling to the Service
Headquarters in Abuja, while additional 28 offices have been opened
for issuance of Residence Permits in Nigeria, bringing the issuance
of Combined Expatriate Residence Permit And Aliens Cards (CERPAC)
closer to the doorstep of employers of expatriates at all 36 states
and FCT,'' he said.
Mohammed said the measures by NIS fit
perfectly into the 60-day national action plan for ease of doing
business in Nigeria that was approved recently by the Presidential
Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), as well as the
administration's efforts to boost international tourism.
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