The Federal Government has said Nigerians applying for international passports under the ongoing special passport intervention exercise in the United Kingdom are not required to pay any extra charges beyond the approved official fees.
The clarification was contained in a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the Minister of Interior on Media and Publicity, Alao Babatunde, on behalf of the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
“The intervention was introduced to provide Nigerians in the UK with more opportunities to process their passport applications, and no new fees have been added to the exercise.”
“This process does not come with extra cost different from the official fees of $150 and $230 for five-year and 10-year validity passports respectively, exclusive of bank charges,” the statement said.
It added that neither the Ministry of Interior nor the Nigeria Immigration Service had introduced any charges outside the approved fees.
The minister acknowledged the concerns raised by some Nigerians in the UK over the inconvenience experienced during the application and processing of passports.
According to the statement, the Ministry of Interior is already working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ensure the challenges experienced during the exercise are addressed.
The government said it remained committed to improving services for Nigerians at home and abroad.