The regime that applies
A visa is required for most nationalities. The system has been reformed several times in recent years, with online application and biometric enrolment; visa on arrival is no longer available, and every application must be submitted online before travel. Check the current arrangement on the official immigration service portal rather than on a travel blog — this is a country where the procedure genuinely changed between one year and the next.
A visit to family typically requires an invitation letter from the host with a copy of their identification and proof of address, plus a return ticket and evidence of funds.
Yellow fever, and it is checked
The yellow fever certificate is compulsory and verified at arrival; it must be at least ten days old. Malaria is intense and year-round across the country: prophylaxis is not optional, and mosquito protection from dusk to dawn matters as much as the tablets. Typhoid, hepatitis A and routine boosters are advised.
Read the advice state by state
Nigeria is not one security situation but several. Advisories for the north-east, parts of the north-west and the Niger Delta are severe, while Lagos and Abuja are subject to ordinary urban precautions. Insurance cover follows the advisory, so check the specific state before travelling internally, and take local advice on road travel rather than assuming.
Arrival
Lagos and Abuja are the main entry points. Arrange a pickup in advance rather than negotiating at the terminal. Keep a copy of the passport and visa on you and the original secure; informal checkpoint requests are best handled with polite patience and no cash.
Three rules that hold for every destination
- Use the official portal. Sites that "facilitate", "expedite" or "check" a visa charge for a service the state does not require, and collect your identity documents on the way. The official site is always cheaper and usually faster.
- A visa is not a right of entry. It is permission to present yourself at the border; the officer there decides. Carry the return ticket, the address of your stay and evidence of funds.
- Read your own foreign ministry's travel advice before booking, not after. It conditions your insurance and your consulate's ability to help.
The passport comes first
The commonest reason for being refused boarding is not the visa but the passport: insufficient validity beyond the return date, no free pages, a damaged document. Check it the day you decide to travel, not the week you leave — a renewal takes weeks.