Nigeria is preparing to impose new visa requirements on U.S. citizens after Washington expanded its rules requiring international applicants to disclose social media accounts and lower certain privacy settings.
The U.S. government said the move would allow immigration officials to vet visa applications more thoroughly and identify potential security risks.
In response, Nigerian Foreign Ministry spokesman Kimiebi Ebienfa announced that Nigeria will reciprocate the measure for Americans applying for Nigerian visas.
“Some people from the U.S. might want to apply for a visa, and we will adopt the same measures. Anything visa is reciprocal.
What you are mandating our nationals to do, we will also mandate your citizens applying for our visa to do,” Ebienfa said.
He confirmed that the Foreign Ministry will meet with the Interior Ministry and the National Intelligence Agency to finalize the details of the new policy.
“We will have a meeting and agree on our best way to respond to it holistically,” he added, stressing that Nigeria had been informed of the U.S. plan ahead of time.
The debate over visa restrictions comes as Nigeria continues to push back against what it sees as discriminatory or overly restrictive immigration policies abroad.
In July, Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar said Nigeria would not bow to U.S. pressure to accept deported Venezuelans under President Donald Trump’s administration.
Nigeria’s reciprocal response reflects its broader strategy of defending the rights and dignity of its citizens overseas while maintaining balanced diplomatic relations.