The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has announced another rise in the cost of standard passports, effective September 1, 2025, triggering dissatisfaction across social media. The updated charges apply only to applications processed within Nigeria, while fees for Nigerians abroad remain unchanged.
In a statement released Thursday by ACI AS Akinlabi, spokesperson for the NIS, it was revealed that the price adjustments will see the 32-page passport, valid for five years, set at ₦100,000, doubling from previous rates. Meanwhile, the 64-page booklet, which lasts a decade, will now cost ₦200,000.
This upgrade in pricing comes nearly a year after a similar revision in August 2024, when fees for these passports surged from ₦35,000 to ₦50,000 and ₦70,000 to ₦100,000, respectively. According to officials, the increase is necessary to maintain the quality and security standards of the Nigerian passport while striving to keep the document accessible to citizens.
Despite this rationale, the announcement has raised strong criticism from Nigerians coping with economic difficulties. Many describe the latest pricing as an unfair burden, especially given the country’s economic hardship.
Many Nigerians on X(formally Twitter) expressed their dissatisfaction about the new increase. A user with the username @NaijadentistNG expressed frustration;
This is not reform; it’s cruelty in its purest form. A passport is not a luxury item; it’s a basic right of mobility and identity. Three hikes in two years signal not governance, but fiscal laziness; plugging holes by squeezing the poor.
No serious state prices out its own people from global access. This government is proving daily that its only innovation is in inventing new burdens for Nigerians. Reform should ease lives, not weaponize poverty
Another user @ADCVanguard_ said;
This govt has turned governance into legalized extortion. Passport now costs more than a worker’s monthly wage in a country where hunger is everywhere. Tinubu promised Renewed Hope, but all Nigerians got is renewed hardship. No empathy, no shame, no vision. This is not leadership; it’s punishment. Nigerians deserve better! 💔🇳🇬
Another X user, Dr. Hidima with the username @Realoilsheikh lamented;
This govt is grossly insensitive. ₦200K for a passport? Thank God I won’t renew till 2035! By all measures, these wicked policy makers are gone. Regardless, what are we driving at? Must every agency squeeze common Nigerians of their hard earned money?
@BTOofficial you people should be calming down
However, some defended the adjustment. Tunde Ayinde, responding on X, noted improvements by the Interior Ministry, including faster passport processing and the introduction of automated e-gates at airports.
Good services require adequate funding – he said
With passport fees doubling in less than a year, Nigerians face increased financial strain amid a challenging economic landscape. The debate over the justification for these escalations continues, showing the tension between government efforts to enhance services and the public’s capacity to afford essential documents. Whether this trend persists or prompts policy reconsideration remains to be seen.
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