Tag Archive for: visa on arrival

Business Permits

Foreign nationals establishing a trade, business, or profession in Nigeria must first obtain a business permit from the Minister of Interior (MOI), usually granted for 90 days with the possibility of a 30-day extension. As the business permit does not include residence authorization, most foreign nationals then apply for a residence permit in-country. The new regulations now clarify that even upon obtaining residence authorization, business permits must still be renewed. While past practice was often to forgo renewing the business permit once a residence permit was issued, the regulations now include penalties for failing to renew business permits.

Work Permits

The new regulations now provide a Temporary Work Permit (TWP) which is a single-entry work authorization, valid for two to three months, with a possible 30-day extension available in-country. Significant penalties also now apply for failing to obtain requisite extensions. Note that this TWP is granted outside the current expatriate quota levels which apply only to more long-term work permits.

For longer work assignments, companies must apply for a work permit under the expatriate quota through the MOI. In a significant improvement in that stream, foreign nationals may now request a “stay of action” letter which allows them to remain in-country pending an expatriate quota renewal and issuance of a renewed work permit, if the initial expatriate quota work permit expires. 

Residence Permits

The new regulations have also further defined the rules and processes for residence permits. The Comptroller General of the Nigerian Immigration Service (CGI) has been tasked with administration of all residence authorizations. The regulations now clarify that residence permits may be granted for stays up to two years. Also of significant benefit to companies and their foreign employees, the regulations now expressly provide that foreign nationals who have pending residence permit applications may travel internationally and re-enter Nigeria during the first 90 days from their original entry.

Investors Visa

The new regulations also call for a new long-term Investment Visa which gives the holder permanent residence status. However, the regulations do not yet formally contain the details of the minimum investment threshold, permissible form of investment, or length of investment.

Visas on Arrival

As Pro-Link GLOBAL reported previously, Nigeria recently greatly expanded its visa-on-arrival scheme to accommodate business travelers from nations with no Nigerian overseas consular post. The new regulations now take that scheme one step further by opening the visa-on-arrival option to all foreign nationals, regardless of their country of residence. However, note that the “visa on arrival approval letter” obtained by an in-country sponsor must still be in hand when the foreign national arrives and requests the visa-on-arrival at his/her port of entry.

Registration Requirements

The new regulations also call for the establishment of a new nation-wide register of foreign nationals in Nigeria. Once implemented, all foreign nationals obtaining residence permits will be required to register their residences at the NIS office in the state where they reside and make subsequent updates to their registration whenever they change their residence. Landlords and owners of hotels, boarding houses, and other lodging accommodations will be required to maintain records of their foreign guests, including names, addresses, occupations, passport information, and arrival and departure dates.

Source

NIGERIA | Pro-Business Plan Expands Visa-on-Arrival and Permissible Business Activities
As part of Nigeria’s recently announced 60-day action plan to improve its international business climate, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has announced the expansion of its visa-on-arrival scheme to accommodate business travelers whose home countries have no Nigerian consular post. Traditionally, business visas are applied for through the Nigerian overseas missions; but in cases where the applicant resides in a country with no Nigerian consular post, the process of applying through a Nigerian consulate in a neighboring country can prove to be expensive and inconvenient.

Effective immediately, the NIS has made visas-on-arrival available to “frequently travelled business persons of international repute” and “executives of multi-national companies” from countries with no Nigerian consular post. Those foreign nationals may apply for visas-on-arrival, valid for a single 14-day stay, at the port of entry. While the visas are issued upon arrival, applicants must arrive already holding a “visa on arrival approval letter” obtained for them by an in-country sponsor. According to the NIS website, requests for the required approval letters will be processed within two working days.

Also, to further accommodate business travelers to Nigeria, the NIS has expanded the definition of business activity permitted under the traditional 90-day business visas issued by the Nigerian overseas missions, as well as the new visas-on-arrival. The list of permissible business activities – in addition to the traditional attendance at meetings, conferences, and seminars – now includes negotiating contracts, sales activities, job interviews, training and research, purchasing and distributing Nigerian goods, attending trade fairs, and emergency or relief work.

Africa’s largest economy, Nigeria is currently in its fourth consecutive quarter of recession, posting a 2.2 percent GDP contraction in the final quarter of 2016. While the slow-down is primarily due to the softening oil market, which is expected to rebound somewhat in 2017, economists have warned that significant government policy reform is sorely needed to restore consumer and business confidence and steer the economy back to growth. Hopefully, the current 60-day action plan and these corporate mobility improvements are just the start of more needed pro-business reforms.