The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has once again tightened entry requirements for Nigerian travelers, introducing more stringent conditions and officially suspending all transit visa applications for Nigerians. The latest directives, communicated to travel agents on Tuesday, come barely a year after the UAE lifted a two-year visa ban on Nigerians.
According to the new guidelines, Nigerians between the ages of 18 and 45 will no longer be eligible for tourist visas unless accompanied. The policy is expected to significantly reduce traffic from Nigeria to Dubai, a key destination for tourism and business.
“For Nigeria nationals, please bear in mind that an applicant aged 18 to 45 years travelling alone is not eligible for TOURIST VISA CATEGORY,” the notice from Dubai immigration stated.
For applicants aged 45 and above, the UAE now requires a personal bank statement spanning six months, with each month’s end balance showing a minimum of $10,000 or its naira equivalent.
“An applicant who is 45yrs or above must provide a Single Nigerian personal bank statement for a period of last six months, with each month’s end balance reflecting a minimum ending balance of USD 10,000 or its naira equivalent,” the directive added. “Kindly note that the above points must be taken into consideration before sending your applications with other existing documents such as hotel reservation, data page, etc.”
Despite the lifting of the previous ban, travel agents say the current policy changes are more restrictive and could make travel to the UAE increasingly difficult for many Nigerians.
