Nigeria Immigration Service Launches New Biometric Emergency Passport for Stranded Citizens Abroad

The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has unveiled plans to launch a Single Travel Emergency Passport (STEP) — a new biometric travel document designed to assist Nigerians abroad whose passports have expired, been lost, or stolen, enabling them to return home securely and verifiably.

Comptroller-General of Immigration, Kemi Nanna Nandap, announced the initiative during the Joint Thematic Meeting of the Khartoum, Rabat, and Niamey Processes held in Abuja, co-hosted by Nigeria and the Government of France.

According to a statement issued on Wednesday by the Service’s Public Relations Officer, ACI Akinsola Akinlabi, the STEP will replace the existing Emergency Travel Certificate (ETC) as part of NIS’s ongoing reforms to strengthen identity management and border governance in line with international standards.

Nandap explained that the STEP would serve as a temporary, single-entry document issued at designated Nigerian embassies and consulates abroad, ensuring secure identification and streamlined repatriation for affected Nigerians.

The Abuja meeting brought together key stakeholders in migration management, including representatives from NAPTIP, the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, ECOWAS, AU, EU, and officials from African and European nations. Discussions focused on enhancing regional cooperation to tackle migrant smuggling and human trafficking, with emphasis on prevention, protection, and prosecution.

In her keynote address titled “Insights on Prevention and Protection as Strategic Pillars to Effective Law Enforcement and Prosecution Responses,” Nandap highlighted the NIS’s broader reform agenda, which seeks to improve migration management, international collaboration, and institutional capacity building.

She reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to aligning its immigration policies with global best practices to promote safe, orderly, and regular migration.