If one is a citizen of ECOWAS, what travel document does one need to enter Nigeria?

1) Only a passport will do.

2) A valid id like a birth certificate will do or

3) any Valid Id will do

Now, change the above situation slightly: The above citizen of an ECOWAS country is also an American or UK citizen and their American Passport clearly says the country of ECOWAS where they were born and a citizen of: What now does such a person need to enter Nigeria?

1) The American Passport saying clearly the ECOWAS country where he was born but with a Nigerian Visa too or

2) He must also carry the Passport of the original ECOWAS State

3) One just needs the American Passport that also indicated where he was born plus another valid id of the ECOWAS State

Thanks in advance for any and all knowledgeable, useful info/advice!

well. i realize every1 in nigeria maybe sleeping now as it should be late there...
so imma keep checking back for any responses as i need the answers to the above questions to make a very important decisions in the nest few days

im also doing research on my own as the nigerian consulate's website here does not have detailed info; however it clearly says that all citizens of ECOWAS member states have a visa waiver to nigeria but we need to be sure what is considered a proof of citizenship of an ECOWAS member state...hence the above question and one wants to ensure a hassle free travel experience

please help

If you are an American citizen and you were born in Ecowas but dont have an Ecowas passport, I think your birth certificate should be enough.

Yes, that is the case...all I have is my American passport that indicates what ECOWAS country I was born in and I also have my original brith certificate with me!

I need to travel soon and getting a Visa may take weeks n I don't wan get into that if i don't have to!
I'm still a lil confused as I have gotten conflicting info online already!

Imma keep searching,n will be contacting the Nigerian Consulate to verify if I am visa exempt as it clearly asserts on their site.

Thanks for ur response

i have spent 1 and half hrs now calling the embassy of Nigeria but have not been able to talk to a single person! the voice-mail of both the Visa depertment and even that of 0 to reach the reception have led me to nowhere.

The website says embassy is only opened from 10pm to 1pm so if im not able to talk to someone to ask this simple question, then the whole day is gone!

the website does not even have a section to inform me if you need a visa...this is the process and this is what we need you to bring...

so, this is gonna be real hard...but i hope not! imma keep trying n see too if i can send an email but i however doubt it will be answered promptly...

bellow is a copy of an email i try to send to the Commission here and bellow that is the response i got and the email will not send.

"This is an info request directed at the VISA Section of this Nigeria High Commission: As a Citizen of an ECOWAS country by Birth...do I need a Visa to visit Nigeria? I am also a Citizen of ___ and my ____ Passport indicates the Country of my birth.

If i however need a VISA to enter Nigeria, what do i need to obtain this VISA as there are no readily available info or forms to fill out on this site!


Thank you in advance for your promt response"

response:
"Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_CONSTANT_ENCAPSED_STRING, expecting ')' in /home/nigeriaw/public_html/nhc/FormToEmail.php on line 221"

and, oh...i have called yet again to a second line in the embassy but no answer and i have left a message. i hope to hear back from someone and will update soon after...

pls if anyone reading have any valid info to help out, feel free to and if possible add a link

the voice-mail said they r opened from 9am to 4pm as against what the website said (10am to 1pm) so i have kept trying to see if i can talk to someone...no answer so far...

The phone message I left since yesterday is yet to b retuned by the embassy...will try again tomorrow!

Yo, if you're serious, I'll advice you go to the Nigerian High Commission, I think in New York or DC. Take your original birth certificate and apply for an Ecowas passport there.

hey bro, im surprised you say if im serious!??

r u implying that a nigerian embassy can issue me an ECOWAS passport? i did not realize that at all...will definitely look into that toO

i wish i can just call and have someone pick up the phone so i can ask a few questions as i really really need to be in nigerian as soon as i can make it there and this silence from this high commission is unbelievable.

will try again today n monday and tuesday until there is a human response to say yes you need a visa or no you dont and if i need a visa, what i need to get it...

if not im will sure up with my birth certificate n foreign passport at a point of entry in nigeria

IN THIS DAY N AGE WHY CAN I NOT GO INTO A NIGERIAN HIGH COMMISION WEBSITE AND LOOK INFO UP AND PRINT OUT FORMS AND FILL 'EM OUT PAY THE FEES AND GET WHAT I NEED??

I've tried two different numbers at the embassy so far this morning n only two things happenes: the line is engaged ie busy tone or it rings n gives one the option to chose a section to talk to someone but as soon as you chose, the phone rings again and it then goes to voicemail that says "visa section" leave a message!

There is only one Nigerian consulate located in this vast country...I'm beginning to think they have closed it down?
I'm sure someone may have gotten to them n say....guys something is wrong since one can not even email y'all n they would say oh really n look it up n fix it!?
I have never attempted to send an email since the 20 or so years I have been online n not be able to send an email for any reason other than invalid email address - script error on a Nigerian government website in one of the most advanced nations of the world is left uncorrected?? WOW

Nigerian bureaucracy is fu<ked up. Presenting your passport and birth certificate at port of entry might not work. Try to make plans to visit the nigerian high commission in person. Holla when you get here. Hope you hawt!!!

Thanks Mavor for putting a small smile on my face (yes, im very cute)...but perhaps i need to calm the fu-ck down, still - i hate to have to get a visa to visit anywhere in the world and im totally aggravated that i can not get past the primary stage get accurate info from source so i can then move forward and get what i need and travel to the city where the high commission is located and see them...if that is what i have to

it will be a total disaster if i travel all the way to the place the commission is located n find it closed or and be told i did not come down with the right stuff they need to issue a visa...so, either way i need to 1st talk to them

No update Update: i called the Nigerian consulate again today and as it was all last week, my calls met dead silence!! Not once did someone answered the calls, just utter silence!

I got a Visa from this same consulate before...I called them they answerd the phone, I told them I needed a Visa to Nigeria, they asked for my address and mailed me the forms...I filled 'em forms, added what they said they required and mailed it back to them and I got my passport back later with a Visa!

I thought I was told that things are getting better for that country and I had hope that things will be faster this time...things were smooth the last time I just thought it would simply be faster this time lol!

Unlike the last time, there is now a Private Visa Agency located in the same area as the consulate and for a fee, they have promised to get me a Nigerian Visa! I called them today (the private visa company) and the phone was answered and the lady passed me on to the right person who in turn politely answered all my questions!
'The Nigerian embassy will treat me only as the citizen of the country whose passport I will use to travel so I'm gonna need a visa...she said'

'...and yes, she is aware that the Nigerian consulate will simply not answer their phone for some reason and that is normal for them...also, forget calling from 1 - 2pm any day as ur call will never be answerd!!!'

It does not feel right but I may have to use this Agency! We typically do not use the services of agencies to get Visas here in the Western World due to so many reasons as I will be disclosing all my private personal info...stuff I usually would have no problem giving to an embassy myself! sighhh

Decision time tomorrow...

i've tried again today to talk to someone at the Nigerian embassy but no response to the phone calls! siighh

i left a message at the reception and then called back and left a message on the extension of the second to the person in charge of the consulate and explained briefly how for the past 7 or 8days i have called and called just to request for visa forms (which by the way is not on their website)and have failed to talk to a single soul as the phone has not been answered even once in those 8days!!

I am truly surprised at this point even for a sometimes skeptic like i am...damnn!

what if i was a Nigerian in some trouble for the past 8days and i have been tryna contact this people for help? this is so odd and this silence is deafening!

now, in the Western World, its not uncommon for a place like an embassy or a consulate to have their voice-mail say what date it was and why they can not take your call now, if they are in the office or away temporarily or ...inform clients that the place is closed for a week or two and what date the office will be open again...and in
case of emergency, whom or what number to call!

if i didnt have to drive 4 or 5hrs to get to the consulate i would simply just do now as frustrated as this whole thing makes me feel...despite the fact that it would be a wasted trip as i am not sure what they gonna need to issue me the visa that i need...im not even sure the consulate is still open for business, never mind getting a visa issued!

im laughing at this as i just came to the realization...what if i was in Bukina Faso and tryna get a hold of a staff at a nigerian embassy?? i just shudder at the thought...and this is something i take for granted normally that if i was anywhere in the world and anything happened and i need to talk to my embassy, it would take one or two phone calls...and i would get the info i need!

well, nigerians pls respond, is this peculiar or what im going through to contact ur embassy is normal??

i do not expect the moderators to promote this topic because its not ibos fighting Yorubas over who is the better tribe or a topic about one of ur home movie actors getting married lol

You must have your original ECOWAS passport or you'd be required to get a Visa. The same is applicable to Nigerians with American passports. Showing where you were born doesn't matter.

$tunna:
i've tried again today to talk to someone at the Nigerian embassy but no response to the phone calls! siighh

i left a message at the reception and then called back and left a message on the extension of the second to the person in charge of the consulate and explained briefly how for the past 7 or 8days i have called and called just to request for visa forms (which by the way is not on their website)and have failed to talk to a single soul as the phone has not been answered even once in those 8days!!

I am truly surprised at this point even for a sometimes skeptic like i am...damnn!

what if i was a Nigerian in some trouble for the past 8days and i have been tryna contact this people for help? this is so odd and this silence is deafening!

now, in the Western World, its not uncommon for a place like an embassy or a consulate to have their voice-mail say what date it was and why they can not take your call now, if they are in the office or away temporarily or ...inform clients that the place is closed for a week or two and what date the office will be open again...and in
case of emergency, whom or what number to call!

if i didnt have to drive 4 or 5hrs to get to the consulate i would simply just do now as frustrated as this whole thing makes me feel...despite the fact that it would be a wasted trip as i am not sure what they gonna need to issue me the visa that i need...im not even sure the consulate is still open for business, never mind getting a visa issued!

im laughing at this as i just came to the realization...what if i was in Bukina Faso and tryna get a hold of a staff at a nigerian embassy?? i just shudder at the thought...and this is something i take for granted normally that if i was anywhere in the world and anything happened and i need to talk to my embassy, it would take one or two phone calls...and i would get the info i need!

well, nigerians pls respond, is this peculiar or what im going through to contact ur embassy is normal??

i do not expect the moderators to promote this topic because its not ibos fighting Yorubas over who is the better tribe or a topic about one of ur home movie actors getting married lol

Yes, I understand your frustration bro but the majority of Nigerians bred in Nigeria sadly don't do things in an orderly fashion. As a result, not even relocating abroad (western world) will change many of them. I remember few years ago, I needed to get a brand new Nigerian Ecowas passport because mine was expiring. I could not get a hold of anyone on the phone either and I live outside New York in a whole nother state far from New York. I had to send an aunt whose office happens to be close to the Nigerian embassy in New York City and she went there in person, spoke to the gentleman who works there and then called me on her cell phone and handed the phone over to the man to speak with me. That is how I was able to have all my questions answered by him. I then flew into New York City, applied for the passport and was told it will be ready for pickup in 10 days or so. I flew back to my state and had my aunt pick it up and ship the passport via post back to me. I am a Nigerian by the way.

Now to your questions. The lady was right. If you are travelling with an American passport, you will need a visa for Nigeria even if you were born in an ECOWAS country. Showing your birth certificate will not cut it. As a citizen of a fellow ECOWAS country, you must hold a passport from said country to be waived a visa to Nigeria or any other ECOWAS country for that matter. So, if you are from Burkina Faso as you hinted somewhere in your post, you must have your ECOWAS passport issued to you either from your country while back home OR from the Burkina Faso consulate/Embassy here in the States. That is the only way you will be exempt from visa to Nigeria. Mind you that even though it is called the ECOWAS passport, the Ecowas member country is still written on the passport. Mine says "Economic Community of West African States Nigerian Passport". Yours will say the same except in place of Nigeria, it will say Burkina Faso.

So, to cut a long post short, you have two options at this point. You can either travel with your US passport but apply for a Nigerian visa in New York or Washington DC before heading out to Nigeria or if you want to avoid the hassle of obtaining a Nigerian visa, I suggest you go to your country's consulate/embassy in New York and apply for an ECOWAS passport there. The choice is yours. Here is the address and phone number to the Burkina Faso Consulate:

865 United Nations Plaza, Suite 326
New York, NY 10017
USA

Phone: 1(212) 308.4720

Lastly, if you happen not to be from Burkina Faso, I apologize. But the information I have given you in regards to whether you need a visa for Nigeria or not still stands. Goodluck!

wow, @dasparrow... how kind of you to go into such details with ur experience and all - thanks u!

what you said is very similar to what the Visa Agency that i called said. i will simply go through this Agency and pay the $75 they are going to charge for their services and will go for a multiple Visa this time and look into getting the ECOWAS Passport at some point in the near future!

i will update this thread with how things are going with this Visa Agency as they claim to remove the hassle of getting a Visa!

...and NO, they are not able to help you get a Visa to America just in case you are reading this from Nigeria and you start getting some idea (i know i would lol)!

thanks again to those who have shown some concern, u r all very kind

Hey guys any advice on the best Hotel to spend a weekend in Lagos?
I used the Airport Hotel the last time and Lights went off 3 or 4 times in the one night b4 I took off

...and which of the Local Cell Networks is best to activate an iPhone on for naija? does anyone here know?

Waiting for my Visa application with my fingers crossed...

wish me luck as i must have a very good reason to convince the insurance i bought to refund my ticket money lol

Good hotels in Lagos, depending on the area we have Protea Oakwod Ikoyi, Ibis Hotel Ikeja, Lorient Harbour VI...let's know what area u want in Lagos and we'll narrow down the search

actually, i just want a decent Hotel close to the Airport where i can spend a night or two before moving on!! thanks for ur response!

Ok, in that case Ibis hotel is ur best bet, it's 3 mins from the international airport. Email us at info@africholidays.com with ur dates and we'll handle ur discounted bookings.

I see, you must send me a website to look u up but honestly I doubt I wanna go through any agents for a 2nights stay in a hotel! The Tickets agent wanted to look up hotels for me n all he said was oops, the Nigeria hotels site he had was not working properly n promised to get back to me...! But it's been several day now but no word.
Anyways, going through a third party means using a credit card n for me that proposition is a none stater as my government website here warned against using a credit card in Nigeria.

I need a name of a hotel I can just drive to and lodge for two nights