Nigeria to begin home delivery of passports to Nigerians anywhere in the world

The Nigerian government has said it is concluding negotiations with Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST) to use its speed mail service to begin delivering passports to Nigerians who request the service.

Rauf Aregbesola, Nigeria’s Minister of Interior, stated this while speaking at the opening of the Nigeria Immigration Passport Front Desk Office in Auchi, Edo State, on Saturday, May 20, 2023.

Areggbesola stated that the government is in the final stages of finalizing discussions with NIPOST to use its speed mail service for the project wherever Nigerians are found worldwide.

Media Adviser to the Minister, Sola Fasure, said that launching more Passport Front Office in Edo State was part of the Nigerian government’s plans towards efficient passport delivery service to Nigerians.

Daily Trust reports that he said the government intended to provide a passport to anyone who wants it within a reasonable timeframe at an affordable price without hassles.

The Minister noted that Edo State has one of the highest passport applications in the country and revealed that the waiting time between application and collection would increase due to demands.

Aregbesola said: “Our current working schedule is that new application would take six weeks after biometric data registration and three weeks for renewal. This is reasonable, competitive, and in line the global best practices.

“The challenge, however, is the waiting period at the application and data registration point.

“All applicants will be put in a queue, depending on the centre of their choice, to determine the registration date. Regrettably, it might take two months in some highly competitive centres where the application is very high. We have no control over this.”

According to the Minister, the Nigerian government is intentional about front desk operations and offices to increase registration centers and reduce the waiting time before biometric data capture.

He noted that the ministry had opened front desk offices in five locations in Nigeria in 2023 alone.

The Comptroller General of the Nigerian Immigration Service, Isah Jere Idris, said Edo State ranks fifth among states with the highest volume of passport applications in the country with 56,291 applications out of the 1.5 million passports produced in 2023.