US ends routine visa services in Abuja, moves operations to Lagos

The US Mission in Nigeria has reminded Nigerians that routine visa services at the embassy in Abuja will end from August 1, 2026.

The mission reiterated that applicants must henceforth process their visas at the Consulate General in Lagos, the newly designated regional hub.

The US Mission in Nigeria issued the reminder in a fresh statement on its social media platforms on Friday, days after it first disclosed the policy as part of a broader realignment of visa operations across Africa.

The mission again explained that the US Department of State was consolidating visa processing at select regional hubs as part of a long-standing practice that strengthens national security by promoting more uniform screening, vetting and adjudication standards

It reiterated that the realignment was also aimed at improving efficiency and adjusting to shifting US immigration policy priorities and objectives.

“Citizens and residents of Nigeria who wish to apply for a visa must schedule an appointment and pay the required visa fee at US Consulate Lagos, the new designated location,” the mission repeated in the latest notice.

In a more detailed notice on its website, first published earlier in the month, the State Department had said the Trump administration had no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans, describing the changes as part of efforts to put “America and Americans first.”

It said the department was constantly evaluating its overseas operations to advance the country’s priorities as efficiently as possible, adding that the process would maintain rigorous security screening while aligning resources with America’s national interests.

The department had clarified that embassies and consulates affected by the realignment would remain open, noting that the changes would not alter their operating status or the work they continued to do on behalf of Americans.

Twenty cities across Africa have been designated as regional visa hubs, including Lagos, Abidjan, Accra, Addis Ababa, Cape Town, Dakar, Nairobi, Johannesburg and Kinshasa. Twenty-five other posts, including Abuja, will now offer only American Citizen Services and limited non-immigrant visa services, while Bangui and Khartoum will have no consular visa operations at all.

The realignment affects both non-immigrant and immigrant visa categories, including tourist, business and petition-based visas, as well as immediate relative, family preference, employment-based, fiancé/fiancée, adoption, diversity visa, and follow-to-join asylee and refugee cases.

The department had earlier noted that visa suspensions under Presidential Proclamation 10998, along with existing visa bond requirements and immigrant visa pauses for certain nationalities, remained unaffected by the new arrangement.

It had advised applicants with appointments already scheduled at affected posts to check their emails for specific guidance, warning that visa fees paid at posts with limited services from August 1 would not be refunded if appointments were not booked by July 31.

The department also said immigrant visa applicants could complete their medical examinations in their home country where a panel physician was available, or at their designated hub if not.