US embassy says touts, travel agents operate with impunity
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Touts and travel agents fleece Nigerians with impunity, right under our nose, the United States embassy warns; and laments it cannot do anything to stop it because the fraudsters operate near but not on its premises.
It reflects the quagmire of the Nigerian system where financial fraud and other forms of crime fester and spread because law enforcement officers, instead of prosecuting and deterring criminals, collect bribe as their own cut from the national cake.
“So, unfortunately, visa facilitators and travel agents, and some others manipulate our visa appointment system for their own financial gain,” US Embassy Country Consular Coordinator Susan Tuller told journalists in Lagos.
“And even though in Lagos, they operate in the parking lot, right next door to our Consular operations, we really have little control over that because they’re not operating on our property and we can’t police them ourselves.
“Unfortunately, the visa facilitators here operate with impunity. They operate for financial gain.
“And as long as they are allowed to do that and as long as Nigerians continue to pay very high fees to them to get an appointment, that will likely continue and that makes it very hard for us to really control the number of visa appointments that we make available.”
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Danger of booking interview through touts
The US Mission launched ‘No-Interview Renewals’ on February 1 to hasten non-immigrant visa renewal for Nigerians who have visited and returned from America without breaking the law.
US visa application fee is $160 worldwide and payment is valid now till September 2023 because of the backlog cause by the pandemic, instead the previous validity of one year.
“I really want to reiterate that there’s no reason to pay any additional fees to a visa facilitator or travel agent,” Tuller stressed, per reporting by PREMIUM TIMES.
“As of right now, there are thousands of appointments available for this no interview renewal programme, they are available online right now.
“And as long as you meet the criteria and follow the procedures that I’m about to describe, there is no reason to pay somebody to get that appointment.
“One of the real challenges with paying somebody for the appointment is that the visa facilitators use fake information to book these appointments.
“So then when you buy an appointment from them, you don’t know the information they’ve put in the system. Once the information is entered into the system, this system is part of your consular service record with us.
“And we see a lot of people who pay the facilitator who do even know what was used to book the appointment and then they come in and we are not able to see them because the information in the system doesn’t match the information they have on their passports and what they are telling us.
“I really urge people to do this themselves. Don’t pay somebody to do it for you and you don’t know what will come of that. All of the information is available to the public on www.ustraveldocs.com.”
Drop off application in person
Tuller also stressed the importance of visa applicants having to drop off their application in person, or if a family, by a member of the family.
“What we don’t want is to create a whole new industry for our visa facilitators to charge to drop off people’s passports.
“So we ask that you come in person and then if we have any questions we can ask you right then to make sure you have all the information that we need.”
Eligibility criteria
The US Mission expanded its visa services to assist non-immigrant visa applicants in Nigeria who qualify to renew their visas.
It says one may be eligible for a visa renewal without an interview if your application is for a B1/B2, F, M, J (academic only), H, L or C1/D (combined only) visa and you meet each of the following criteria:
- Your previous visa was issued in Nigeria.
- Your previous visa is in the same classification as your current application.
- Your previous visa was a full validity, multiple entry visa.
- Your previous visa expired within the last 24 months or will expire in the next 3 months from the date of application.
- You have all your passports covering the entire period since receiving the previous visa and the passport with the most recent visa.
- You have never been arrested or convicted of any crime or offense in the United States, even if you later received a waiver or pardon.
- You have never worked without authorisation or remained beyond your permitted time in the United States.
- If you haven’t already paid the visa fee, you’ll need to pay online or in cash at a GTBank before scheduling to apply to renew your visa.
- If you are qualified based on the above criteria, visit https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ng to start your application.
- Login to the account using the information you used the last time you made a visa appointment or create a profile.
- Select Nonimmigrant Visa Application, New Application/Schedule Appointment, and Visa Renewal without Interview.
- Fill in your information and add any family members who are applying who also meet all the eligibility criteria. (Each applicant must individually meet the criteria; minors can apply without an interview only if they meet the eligibility criteria on their own.)
- Answer a series of questions to determine eligibility for the program.
- If eligible, schedule a date and time to submit your documents to the U.S. Consulate in Lagos (for February appointments) or the U.S. Embassy in Abuja (starting in March).
- Gather the required documents as outlined on the appointment letter and present them at your drop-off appointment time.
- Your passport will be returned by DHL with your visa, if your application is approved, or with a letter telling you the next steps to complete your application.
- Please see our website at https://ng.usembassy.gov/visas/nonimmigrant-visas/ for further information and to monitor changes in processing times.
The notice added:
Emergency appointments
“If you have a life-or-death emergency, you may request an expedited, in-person interview, however, to accommodate No-Interview Visa Renewals, appointments will be very limited.
“Business travel, conferences, weddings, and graduations are not considered emergencies.
“If you have an emergency and need to travel immediately, please follow the guidance provided at https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ng or +234-1-227-8955 to request an emergency appointment.
Special note
“Third parties unaffiliated with U.S. Embassy Abuja and Consulate General Lagos may seek to take advantage of various visa services to target visa applicants with fraudulent offers or claims.
“Applicants should fill out their own forms and make their appointments themselves via the official websites.
“As future opportunities for Interview Waiver appointments become available, they will be communicated via our website.
“Remember to rely on information only from genuine sources: https://travel.state.gov https://ng.usembassy.gov/visas/ and https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ng
“Avoid becoming the victim of a scam!”