The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has introduced new, more stringent visa restrictions for Nigerian nationals, significantly tightening travel conditions less than a year after lifting a two-year visa ban on Nigerians.
The new rules, communicated to Nigerian travel agents on July 8, 2025, include a complete ban on transit visa applications for Nigerians and new limitations on tourist visas.
Under the updated policy, Nigerian applicants aged between 18 and 45 years are no longer eligible to obtain tourist visas if traveling alone.
Those aged 45 and above must provide a personal bank statement from a Nigerian bank covering the last six months, with each month showing a minimum ending balance of $10,000 (or its naira equivalent), in addition to the usual documents such as hotel reservations and passport data pages.
These changes are expected to drastically reduce the number of Nigerian travelers visiting Dubai and other parts of the UAE, impacting business, tourism, and family visits.
The transit visa ban eliminates a key travel route often used by Nigerians connecting through the UAE to other destinations.
The new restrictions follow closely on the heels of similar visa limitations imposed by the United States on Nigerian nonimmigrant visas, which now mostly allow single entry with a three-month validity.
Analysts suggest these coordinated moves reflect broader concerns about immigration integrity and reciprocity between Nigeria and these countries.
The UAE’s decision has raised concerns within Nigeria’s travel and tourism sectors, as well as among prospective travelers who now face more hurdles and financial scrutiny when applying for visas.
The policy shift underscores a tightening of immigration controls by Gulf and Western nations in response to perceived irregularities involving travelers from Nigeria and other African countries.
