No fewer than 29,723 Nigerians overstayed their U.S. non-immigrant tourism/business (B1/B2) visas between October 1, 2017, and September 30, 2018.
The US Department of Homeland Security, in its new report titled: “The fiscal Year 2018 Entry/Exit Overstay Report”, said these immigrants, who entered the United States legally, refused to leave the country after their visas expired.
The report said that 195,785 Nigerians that were given visas into the US were expected to leave ”within the above window.”
Of this number, Nigeria had 15.18 per cent rate of overstay and a Suspected ‘In-Country Overstay’ rate of 14.81 per cent.
The report also showed that Nigeria has no departure record for 29,004 immigrants; while only 719 travellers left the country after their visas expired.
Djibouti, a small Africa country, has the highest rate of visa overstay immigrants at 180; with 403 expected departures.
The numbers translate to 44.67 per cent and a Suspected In-Country Overstay rate of 43.92 per cent.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Mission in Nigeria announced new visa application procedures for Nigerian citizens. The move is seen in some quarters as a move to tackle the issue of visa overstay in the U.S.
