I received an international passport three months after applying – and not without greasing the palms of the NIS officers

The moment I applied for my international passport via the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) website in January 2024, I signed up for a journey full of frustrations.

In an earlier first reportwhere I documented my experiences from the moment I started the application to the moment I was unable to make an admission due to an alleged network issue at the Ilesa immigration office, despite having booked an appointment in advance, you will find that it is not a walk in the park was for me.

I would not have opted for the self-application if Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, the Minister of Interior, had done so, had not given an assurance through a post on K on January 8 that Nigerians could now apply for their international passports through the automated application process from the comfort of their homes.

If I were to deny that many Nigerians have commented highly on automation, such as the ease of applying online, not having to pay extra money for fast-tracking and getting their passports within a few days or weeks of applying, I would be a hypocrite. Likewise, it would be unfair to downplay my experience and that of other Nigerians who have suffered extortion and unnecessary delay at some centres.

READ ALSO: REPORTER’S DIARY: I applied for an international passport online, but biometric registration was impossible due to ‘network problem’

Network issues thwarted my biometric recording in January

I left Lagos for Ilesa for my biometric admission in January, but when I arrived at the passport office, the officials said they were having network problems. After spending almost nine hours there on January 25, I left, but not without submitting my documents to a female official who received them with obvious reluctance.

When I returned the next day, some officers told me confidentially that I would be wasting my time just like the day before. So I returned to Lagos. But before I did that, I was given the contact details of a staff member and an agent at the passport office.

During my conversation with them over the next few days, their feedback on the network issue was the same. But on February 12, I received good news: the network had been restored and I could travel to Ilesa for the biometric recording.

READ ALSO: Immigration Headquarters rejects passport application of 78-year-old for failure to pay N15,000 bribe

Extortion disguised as administrative fees

There are no two words for extortion. But my next visit to the Ilesa immigration office on March 4 taught me that extortion has different names and can be disguised as administrative charges.

I got to the office before 9am and when I entered the premises I had to write my name down like the few other people before me. My name was one of the first ten names in the booklet provided for passport applicants. Only those who came for biometric measurements had their names written down.

My once dashed hopes were somewhat rekindled, as the last time I was there, in January, we were not asked to write names. But the little hope I had was short-lived.

Around 9:35 a.m., a man who looked like a senior immigration official spoke to us under the pavilion, where I and others were sitting. The name tag on his chest had the words on it ‘Ba Achike’.

“We have 17 names here on the list, which we will take to our computer. We type the names into the system to identify applicants whose data has been deleted. If yours has fallen, we will call you so you can go out and capture it. For those whose names cannot be mentioned, this does not mean we will not call you. As soon as your details disappear, we will come and call you,” he told us.

Not even ten minutes after his speech, another immigration officer returned with the paper containing the list of names. As he called out people’s names, mine was left out. “Well, maybe my information isn’t gone,” I said to myself.

I sat and watched as more people arrived and wrote their names in one of the papers on the table. But when the officer came back to name more names, I became concerned. It was about 10am and several people who came after me had been called in.

I then started talking to fellow applicants, and it became clear to me that many of them were not applicants like myself. They knew a constable or an officer whose connection would be useful to them.

At that moment, my anger was pointless. So around 11:17 am I contacted the guy whose update on the resolved network issue made me travel. Within minutes I was in his office, where I met a lady who was there to apply for her passport.

READ ALSO: Nigerian passport ranks 50th in Africa

N6,000 FOR BIOMETRIC CAPTURE, N5,000 FOR FAST TRACKING

Before traveling, I had interacted on social media with someone whose parents had to pay an additional N10,000 each at the Ilesa immigration office to be picked up for the renewal of their passports. This person told me that he applied for his parents’ passport renewal online and they got their passports within weeks of registration, after parting with a total of N20,000.

With this in mind, I knew I might have to pay at some point, but what shocked me was the basis for the payment. When I arrived at the contact person’s office, he made me understand that self-applicants were not taken seriously in the Ilesa passport office.

“They don’t take online applicants and online applications seriously here,” he said.

When I asked if there was anything I could do to stop it, he told me that administrative fees were often collected from applicants. According to him, the administrative costs would cost me N6,000.

He claimed that the administrative costs were used for daily operations at the passport office, such as purchasing fuel. I was surprised to hear this, given that the approved budget for 2024 shows that EUR 169.1 billion has been allocated to the Immigration Service, out of the EUR 471 billion allocated to the Ministry of the Interior.

Additional audits through the NIS budget revealed that in 2024, N465 million had been allocated for fuel and lubricants, while N1 billion had been approved for various expenditure including welfare packages, honorariums, sitting allowances, refreshments and meals, and advertisements, among others.

The moment I showed interest in paying the administrative fee of N6,000, they also showed interest in locating my submitted documents. Apparently, documents submitted by self-applicants are often separated from the files of those who apply through an agent or immigration officer.

At exactly 12:26 PM I received an email from NOS stating that my passport application had been approved. At this point, they were still trying to find the documents I had previously submitted as revealed by the man. He later informed me that my file had been located and was being processed. A few minutes after 1pm, I transferred N6,000 to the personal bank account details he provided.

While I was waiting for the biometric capture, which was my main reason for being there, the man then told me that I could pay another N5,000 if I was interested in expediting the passport production.

He even said I could get the passport that Monday if I was willing to pay N3,000 extra but this could only happen if my passport booklet had 64 pages and not 32. I didn’t get my passport that day because I had submitted the application . standard passport, which has 32 pages. He told me they didn’t have 32 page booklets for production.

I finally took my biometric shot around 1:40 PM and was done within minutes. I returned to the man’s office and he promised to notify me as soon as the passport booklets were available. I left the passport office before 3pm.

N5,000 FOR FAST TRACKING: WHAT’S THE POINT?

Two weeks later the man had good news for me: passport booklets of 32 pages were available. I asked him when I was likely to get my passport, and he said I could get it the next day if I paid N5,000 to speed up the production process.

Moreover, he said it would take two to three weeks to get my passport if I didn’t pay the money. I opted for the former and paid N5,000 on March 26.

After I made the payment the apologies started. First, he said they were looking for my file and it was taking time. Then he told me he would get the file “on the condition that oga still allows us to submit lists.” I would later learn from him around 3:25 PM that his boss, the oga, had stopped collecting lists.

When I asked why, he said, “I think this was the song he wanted, probably for today.” I can’t say when the next one is because they just rushed us this morning.

I continued to message him every now and then. At one point he told me that the delay was due to the scarcity of the 32-page passport booklet. Then on April 24, he sent a snapshot of my international passport. Days later I paid him to help arrange for the passport to be sent to me via road transport.

The passport I applied for in January through the automated process was issued on April 24, 2024. Was it seamless, as promised by the Home Secretary? No! Can the entire process be improved? Yes.