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Nigerians Already Paid Over ₦200k In Bribes For Passports – Tinubu’s Aide.
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Five-year passport to cost ₦100k, ten-year booklet ₦200k.
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Tinubu’s aide says Nigerians already paid such amounts in bribes.
The Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, has defended the recent hike in international passport fees, insisting that Nigerians have long paid more through unofficial channels.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that Ajayi stated that applicants seeking to obtain passports often paid immigration officers bribes of over ₦100,000 for a five-year passport and ₦200,000 for a ten-year passport. He explained that the new policy would redirect such payments into government revenue rather than private pockets.
This reaction follows the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) announcement of a revised fee structure for passports, effective September 1, 2025. According to NIS spokesperson, A. S. Akinlabi, the new fees will apply only to applications made within Nigeria.
Under the new rates, applicants will pay ₦100,000 for a 32-page booklet with five-year validity and ₦200,000 for a 64-page booklet with ten-year validity. Akinlabi noted that the adjustment was aimed at safeguarding the quality and integrity of the Nigerian Standard Passport.
He further clarified that the increment would not affect Nigerians applying for passports in the diaspora, whose fees remain unchanged.
Ajayi, in a statement on Friday, said the government was simply formalising what had long existed informally. “Nigerians have always paid more than ₦100k and ₦200k in bribes to get their passports out on time. The difference now is that the money will go into government coffers for the same express service instead of private pockets,” he said.
The revised passport fees have generated mixed reactions across the country, with many Nigerians expressing concerns over affordability and accessibility.
