The Nigeria High Commission in London has announced a £50 refund for applicants who paid a £70 administrative fee for the ongoing special passport intervention exercise in the United Kingdom. The commission said the £20 balance is the standard administrative fee, in a notice published on its website.
The refund follows complaints from Nigerians in the UK over charges and difficulties experienced during the intervention exercise, which was introduced to clear a passport backlog in London and Manchester. The Federal Government had on September 8 denied introducing additional charges for the exercise, saying applicants were required to pay only the official passport fees, excluding applicable bank charges. The Interior Ministry said neither it nor the Nigeria Immigration Service had introduced charges outside the official passport fees, and the NIS said on September 11 that no additional charges were required to participate.
The intervention exercise, initially scheduled to end on September 19, has been extended in London and Manchester to October 3 following a high turnout, as NaijaTrend reported here. The NIS said 1,477 Nigerians were processed and enrolled within the first four days, with more than half of the passports already produced and dispatched.
The High Commission did not specify how or when the refunds will be made. Applicants are advised to rely only on the mission’s authorised channels and to keep their payment evidence.
Sources: Punch, THISDAY, Nigeria High Commission
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