Over 4,000 Nigerians Voluntarily Leave India Under Amnesty Programme

More than 4,000 Nigerians have voluntarily left India under an amnesty programme that allows people living in the country without regular immigration status to regularise their stay or depart without penalties, Nigeria’s High Commissioner to India, Ambassador Saidu Dahiru Muhammad, has said.

Muhammad disclosed the figure during an interactive session with diplomatic correspondents covering the 2026 BRICS Summit in New Delhi. He said the initial six-month amnesty window was extended by an additional three months after he assumed office on July 23, allowing more Nigerians in irregular status to benefit, and that Nigeria has requested a further extension of between three and six months so more citizens can regularise their status or return home voluntarily.

The envoy said concerns raised by the Nigerian community during his engagements with Indian authorities centred on visa overstays, visa renewals and extensions, students’ welfare and medical challenges. He commended the Indian government for the programme and urged Nigerians in India to obey the country’s laws, protect Nigeria’s image and take advantage of the window to regularise their status.

The amnesty is not a deportation drive: the people affected chose to leave voluntarily or regularise, and the sources do not establish how many Nigerians regularised their status rather than departed, whether the requested further extension has been granted, or the exact current deadline. Nigerians still in India can confirm eligibility and documentation directly with Indian immigration authorities or the Nigerian High Commission in New Delhi.

Muhammad also said his mission visited correctional facilities across India and interacted with 198 Nigerian citizens in detention over three days, raising their concerns about delays in court proceedings and access to legal representation with Indian authorities as part of its citizen-focused consular work.

Sources: News Agency of Nigeria, The Nation, Daily Trust