By Danjuma Amodu
Thousands of Nigerians living in the United Kingdom will soon have faster access to passport services as the Federal Government deploys a special intervention team to four major UK cities to clear long-standing delays and bring consular operations closer to the diaspora.
The initiative, announced by the Ministry of Interior, will run from September 7 to September 26 and is part of broader reforms to modernize passport issuance and reduce backlogs for Nigerians abroad.
The mobile team was directed by the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, following consultations between the Nigeria Immigration Service, the High Commission of Nigeria in the UK, and representatives of the Nigerian diaspora community.
According to the schedule, operations will begin simultaneously in London and Manchester from September 7 to September 19. Applicants in London will be attended to at Layali Lounge on Bramley Road, while those in Manchester will be served at Nigerian House on Platt Lane.
The team will then move to Scotland and Wales from September 21 to September 26, with services at the Hilton Convention Centre on Smithfield Road in Aberdeen and Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.
Officials said the intervention centers will handle biometric capture and resolution of pending applications. However, all applicants must first complete registration and payment online via the official portal: passport.immigration.gov.ng.
The Nigeria Immigration Service stressed that no cash payments will be accepted and no walk-ins without prior online registration will be permitted at any of the venues.
The UK outreach is part of a wider strategy by the Ministry of Interior to digitize passport processes, cut processing times, and ease the frustration many Nigerians in the diaspora face when renewing travel documents.
The government said the goal is to ensure citizens abroad can access timely and efficient consular services without having to travel long distances to the High Commission in London.
