Nigeria visa applicants in the US must file at consulates as OIS centers shut July 1

Headline

Nigeria pulled OIS visa centers in the US on July 1, forcing all applicants to file directly with its embassy or consulates

The switch, in plain terms

Nigeria suspended OIS visa processing across the United States effective July 1, 2026 and Nigerian visa applicants must now file directly with the Embassy in Washington, D.C. or the Consulates General in New York and Atlanta, the Nigeria Immigration Service said in a July 9 notice. OIS ran the U.S.-based application centers that handled document drop-off and biometrics. Those centers are shut "until further notice."

The New York Consulate followed on July 8 with revised submission procedures. Independent reporting says OIS described the pause as a temporary administrative recognition process, but no restoration date has been given. The change doesn't touch Nigeria's e-Visa system, which remains available for eligible travelers.

What the new process looks like

Most applicants must now appear in person at the embassy or a consulate on their appointment date. Passports can't be picked up in person, so a self-addressed return envelope is mandatory.

Bring on the appointment date:

• Completed application and passport
• Supporting documents per the mission's checklist
• A self-addressed, prepaid return envelope for passport return

Biometric capture is required, with two exceptions: minors aged 5 and under and adults 70 and over are exempt from fingerprints and photos. The published notices don't list any fee change tied to the suspension.

The shift did not come out of nowhere. The New York Consulate had already announced on June 26 that consular services, including visa applications and biometrics, would move in-house from June 29, days before the nationwide OIS suspension took effect.

Who has to act now

Anyone in the U.S. with a pending OIS appointment or an unsubmitted application routed through OIS needs to restart through the embassy or the nearest consulate. That means booking a mission appointment, planning a trip to Washington, New York or Atlanta if none is local and building in mail time for passport return since in-person pickup is banned.

Business travelers and expats on tight timelines are the ones squeezed hardest. Anyone whose plans allow it can sidestep the whole queue by using the e-Visa channel instead, which the Immigration Service confirmed is unaffected. Travelers weighing a longer stay can cross-check requirements against the Nigeria country guide before committing to the in-person route.