The United States embassy has reminded Nigerian travellers that the expiry date on their visa is not the same as how long they are allowed to stay in the country.
The US embassy issued the reminder in an X post on Friday.
“The length of time an international visitor is allowed to stay in the United States is determined by the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer upon your arrival, NOT your visa expiration date,” the post reads.
Travellers were advised to check their I-94 form, which shows the approved length of their stay here.
The advisory is part of the US efforts to inform Nigerian travellers on immigration procedures in a bid to prevent visa overstays that could lead to deportations.
The reminder comes nearly two weeks after the US embassy announced a new visa policy affecting non-immigrant and non-diplomatic categories for Nigerians and other countries.
Most of the visas’ validity was slashed to three months and confined to a single entry into the US.
Reports had suggested that the decision was partly due to Nigeria’s refusal to accept deportees from the US.
However, the embassy said the reduction in validity was part of an ongoing global review of the use of US visas by other countries using technical and security benchmarks to safeguard the country’s immigration systems.
