Immigrant Visas Processing in Lagos (2023)

Immigrant Visas

By U.S. Mission Nigeria

COVID-19 continues to impact our Immigrant Visa Unit’s ability to schedule immigrant visa interviews; however, the Immigrant Visa Unit is interviewing immigrant visa applicants in all visa categories at this time. We will continue to review our ability to accommodate more appointments and open more appointments as we are able. Applicants who fail to attend their scheduled interview should expect extended delays before an interview can be rescheduled.

By U.S. Mission Nigeria

Immigrant Visas Processing

Presidential Proclamation 9983

Effective February 21, 2020, Presidential Proclamation 9983 was rescinded. If you were previously interviewed at the Consulate General and were refused a visa as a result of a Presidential Proclamation, please contact the call center at support-nigeria@ustraveldocs.com or +23412278955 summarizing the nature of your situation.

Diversity Visas

Nigerians are no longer eligible for the Diversity Visa Lottery. Only people that were born outside of Nigeria or have parents that were born outside of Nigeria are eligible for the Diversity Visa. If you were born in Nigeria to Nigerian born parents – you are not eligible for the visa lottery. You can find more information on the Diversity Visa here.

Priority Dates

The Department of State publishes a list of current priority dates every month in the Visa Bulletin, which is available at: http://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/law-and-policy/bulletin.html

I-730 Petitions

If you have an approved 1-730 petition, consulate staff will contact you directly regarding next steps for scheduling your visa interview. You will need the DOS case numbers and an account on  http://www.ustraveldocs.com. The beneficiaries in your case should proceed with medical exams approximately 3 weeks before the interview date. Additionally, you will be emailed an instruction packet and immigration forms that we request you complete and bring with you to the interview.

Lost, Stolen, Expired Permanent Residence Card

Please see the Legal Permanent Residents page more information.

U.S. Permanent Resident Outside of The United States for More Than One Year

Please see the Legal Permanent Residents page for more information.

By U.S. Mission Nigeria

APPOINTMENTS AND INTERVIEWS

Scheduling Appointments

For most applicants, NVC will contact you with an interview date. NVC assigns interview dates in the order the petition was received. This process can take several months. You must wait for the appointment letter to be sent to you but can expect to receive your appointment letter several weeks before your appointment date is scheduled to give you enough time to get your medical and police reports finalized.

Certain applicants may be emailed by the consulate and asked to schedule an appointment in our online scheduling platform. Please monitor the email address you have previously provided on your application materials, as we may send you important instructions after we accept your case from NVC.

Interview Required

All people who will be receiving an immigration benefit must be in attendance for their interview, including children.

Interview Location

All immigrant visa interviews take place at the U.S. Consulate General in Lagos. We are located at 2 Walter Carrington Crescent on Victoria Island. Petitioners are not allowed to accompany their beneficiaries into the Consulate for their interview. Minors may be accompanied by an adult who has valid photo ID.

Accompanying The Beneficiary

Petitioners are not permitted to accompany their beneficiary into the consulate for their interview. One family member carrying a valid Nigerian government ID may accompany minors or disabled beneficiaries; however, escorts will not be permitted to enter if they do not provide valid ID. We have translators available for beneficiaries who do not speak English.

By U.S. Mission Nigeria

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS AND FEES

How Do I Find And Download The Documents I Need For My Interview?

Download Packet Four (PDF 234KB) or the preparatory packet for K1/K3 visas (PDF239KB) form. You may view and download the DS-260 by clicking here. If you are not able to download the forms from the website, email us at support-nigeria@ustraveldocs.com to request that we send you Packet Four or the K1/K3 preparatory packet.

Visa Fees

If you have been receiving documentation from the National Visa Center, then most likely you have already paid the visa fee. If not, the current IV fee is $325 per applicant, regardless of age. All K-1 and K-3 visas must pay a $265 immigrant visa application fee. You may not ‘mix’ payments and pay for one fee in both Naira and USD

Medical and Police Reports

In order to travel on your immigrant visa, you must have a valid medical and police report. The Consulate recommends getting your medical and police report 2 weeks before your scheduled appointment at the Consulate. The medical report is only valid for 6 months and must be valid in order for you to travel. The police report is valid for 2 years.

Medical Examination – Starting November 17, 2021, it is now mandatory for all applicants who are eligible to receive the Covid-19 vaccine to receive the full series of Covid vaccinations before going to panel physician for their medical examination. Applicants who have not taken full dose of the vaccination will not be able to complete the medical examination process. Please plan accordingly as you cannot attend your interview appointment at the Consulate without your medical report.

Arrange for a medical examination by one the physicians listed below. You are responsible for paying for the medical exam. The medical exam is only valid for six (6) months and must be valid in order for you to travel to the U.S. It is recommended that you get the medical exam 2 weeks before your interview date. However, you should schedule your interview appointment BEFORE processing your medicals. A medical exam is required for all applicants, regardless of age.

Police Report

• Applicants 16 or older must submit a police certificate for ALL countries in which they have resided for more than one year after reaching age 16. Please also note that if you hold citizenship in another country, and have lived in that country for a period of six months or more after you turned 16, you must also provide a police certificate from that country. Police certificates are valid for two years from their issuance date.
• Please follow these instructions to facilitate the issuance of your Nigeria Police Clearance Certificate:
  • Submit your passport in person to the Nigeria Police Service commission at Alagbon Close, Ikoyi, Lagos
  • Pay the required fee and take the receipt to the Office of Inspector General at Alagbon Close, Ikoyi
  • Collect your Nigeria Police Clearance Certificate and take it to your visa interview. The certificate should be ready in approximately two weeks, but please allow time for unforeseen delays.

Affidavit Of Support And Joint Sponsors

The Affidavit of Support is generally required by all applicants who are immigrating based on a family relationship with a U.S. citizen or U.S. green card holder. The Affidavit of Support includes the appropriate version of Form I-864 (https://www.uscis.gov/i-864) and either an IRS Tax Transcript or both the Tax Return/Form 1040 AND the W-2  from the principal applicant and joint sponsor that demonstrate that the petitioner (and/or joint sponsor) makes at least 125% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines (petitioners who are active duty U.S military members may qualify as a sponsor by meeting 100% of Federal Poverty Guidelines). You can check the poverty guidelines here – if the petitioner makes LESS than 125% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines for their Household size, they MUST get a joint sponsor to also submit an Affidavit of Support along with their most recent tax return. It is required for ALL applicants to demonstrate that the immigrant is not likely to become a public charge while in the United States. A downloaded or scanned photocopy of the Affidavit of Support (I-864) is also acceptable.

Packet 4

Packet 4 contains the information that you will need for your interview. You were sent the Packet 4 in your initial correspondence. If you do not have the Packet 4, you can access it HERE(PDF 234KB).

Documents Required at Interview

There are many documents that you will need to bring; below is a list of what is required:

• Valid medical report from an approved panel physician (see information on medical and police reports above).
• Valid police report (see information on medical and police reports above)
• Affidavit of Support (see information on the Affidavit of Support above)
• Two color passport photos, showing the applicant’s full face against a white background, and taken within the last six months, are required for the interview. These photos must be printed on photo paper and sized 1.5 x 1.5 inches (5 cm x 5 cm).
• For applicants immigrating based on a family or spousal relationship, evidence of relationship with your petitioner. Photographs showing you with the petitioner over different periods of time should be presented during the interview.
• Original Documents – including but not limited to:
  • Marriage certificates
  • Birth certificates – If born in Nigeria after 1992, it must be a National Population Commission (NPC) birth certificate.  If born in Nigeria before 1992, you must obtain an Attestation of Birth from the NPC.
  • Petitioner Birth Certificates – IR5 and F4 applicants should provide their petitioner’s original birth certificate.
  • Divorce certificates (if you petitioner is your spouse or fiancé(e ), you must present divorce decrees for all prior marriages for both you and the petitioner).
  • Adoption certificates (if applicable)
  • Death certificates (if applicable, for the prior spouses of beneficiaries, as well as the prior spouses of petitioners in cases where the petitioner is the spouse or fiancé(e ) of the beneficiary.
  • Chats from social media (DO NOT copy them into a word document – they MUST be printed directly from the site)
  • Phone records showing both phone numbers and duration of call
  • Email correspondence (DO NOT print them in a word document)

By U.S. Mission Nigeria

AFTER THE INTERVIEW

Visa Collection

If you are granted a visa at the time of your interview, your passport and visa will most likely be ready for pickup approximately 10 business days following your interview. Please note that due to the high volume of visas we process and several other logistical necessities, we are not able to expedite the printing of visas. We advise you not to make any irrevocable travel plans before you have the visa in your physical possession.

Administrative Processing And Refusal Under INA 221(G)

If your visa application was refused under Section 221(g) because you need to submit updated or missing supporting documents or for administrative processing, you should proceed to submit your documentation. Your case will be processed in the order it is received. If any additional action is needed on your part, you will be contacted. Please note that this review can take time and we will not respond to requests for status updates if new information or documents have not been received in the past 60 days

All documents should be uploaded into your online application (if your case type requires this), then submitted to the GSS Document Collection Center:

GSS DOCUMENT COLLECTION CENTER
DHL. PLOT 230 MURI OKUNOLA STREET,
VICTORIA ISLAND, LAGOS

Additional information can be found here: The U.S. Consulate does not accept documents sent in the mail.

Case Recommended For Revocation

When a Consular Officer recommends that a petition be revoked, the case is sent from the U.S. Consulate General Lagos to the National Visa Center (NVC). NVC then forwards the case to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ office where the petition was originally approved. The U.S. Consulate General no longer has jurisdiction over a case once it has been recommended for revocation. As such, you should contact NVC at NVCInquiry@state.gov or USCIS for further information about your case. Contact information for USCIS can be found at www.uscis.gov. Please note that it can take several months for a case to be sent from Lagos and processed by NVC and USCIS in the United States.

Waiver Applications And Status

For more information and waiver instructions, please refer to www.uscis.gov/i-601 or www.uscis.gov/i-212 or call the USCIS Customer Service center at (800)375-5283. The U.S. Consulate General, Lagos no longer accepts waiver applications, nor do we adjudicate waiver requests.

Electronic Visa Packets

The majority of immigrant visas are now processing electronically, with the exception of certain case types (including E and K visas). If your case was processed electronically, all the necessary documents are available electronically in our database. This provides a faster, more convenient, and more secure immigration process. The immigration official at the port of entry in the United States will be able to access all the necessary documents when you present your passport and valid immigrant visa.

Case Number, Alien Number, And Paying My Immigrant Visa Fee

Please note, your alien registration number is on the face of the visa foil as “Registration Number: XXXXXXXX”. To complete the ten digits required, add the characters “A0” in front of the registration number. Your Case ID number is also stated on your visa page as the IV Case Number (without the 01 at the end).

Further Information

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), is the agency responsible for adjudicating waivers, processing green cards, and granting U.S. citizenship. More information on those topics can be found at: www.uscis.gov.

Additional information on immigrant visas can be found below:

• Information about immigrant visas and the National Visa Center
• Information about the interview process
• A glossary of technical definitions of terms for visas

Canceling Appointments

COVID-19 related staffing restrictions continue to limit our ability to schedule new appointments for individuals who missed their original appointment date. We strongly suggest you attend your scheduled appointment. If you need a new appointment, visit the USTravelDocs website here.

If there are no available dates to reschedule, you must wait until new appointments are made available. We encourage you to check back frequently to see if new appointments have been added. Please note that there are often significant wait times for appointments, so we encourage you to do your best to attend your originally scheduled date. Diversity Visa appointment dates cannot be rescheduled.