The Nigerian High Commission in the United Kingdom has reduced its administrative charge for the ongoing passport intervention exercise from £70 to £20, following public backlash and scrutiny over the additional fee.
Gatekeepers News reports that the reduction was made on Wednesday, although the mission did not formally notify applicants of the change, which was reflected on its website.
TheCable had reported that the high commission appeared to have disregarded a memo issued by the late President Muhammadu Buhari during a similar passport intervention under his administration.
The memo directed Nigerian diplomatic missions not to charge more than £20 for making their premises available for such exercises.
However, when the current intervention began on Monday, the high commission reportedly imposed an additional £70 administrative charge without approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Applicants with lost passports were also reportedly required to pay £150.
Nigerians in the UK seeking urgent passport renewals booked appointments through the high commission’s online portal, which, at the time of TheCable’s report, continued to display the disputed charges.
According to officials familiar with the payment process, the high commission collected fees from about 3,000 applicants, despite having the capacity to process fewer than 300 people daily.
TheCable also archived the previously displayed charges as evidence of the earlier fee structure.
Although the revised intervention fee has now been reduced to £20, the charge remains contentious because it conflicts with the separate £20 administrative fee stipulated under the Buhari administration.
Officials involved in the exercise told TheCable that the high commission had requested an additional payment to facilitate the process in order to “generate revenue”.
Meanwhile, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, Minister of Interior, said he was concerned about the difficulties Nigerians were experiencing during the passport intervention exercise.
Tunji-Ojo denied that administrative fees were required as allegedly demanded by officials and said consultations were ongoing with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to resolve the issue and prevent further inconvenience to applicants.
The controversy comes amid further disruption to the passport exercise in London.
On Tuesday, the high commission announced that biometric capturing had been suspended in London and directed applicants to alternative centres to continue with their appointments.
