UK’s Largest Visa Application Centre in Africa Opens in Lagos, Despite Moves to Reduce Immigration to the UK

The United Kingdom has opened its largest Visa Application Centre (VAC) in Africa, located in Lagos, Nigeria, amid the UK government’s ongoing plans to reduce net migration and recent announcements of new measures to address immigration levels. 

In the last year alone, the UK said it had processed over 225,000 visa applications from Nigerian nationals, making Nigeria one of the top markets for UK visas and accounting for 5% of the global total for UK visit visas.

In this instance, some of the applicants for the Visa are students; for a Nigerian student applying for a UK Student Visa to pursue a three-year undergraduate course, the total cost would amount to approximately £2,362, which includes the Visa Application Fee of £490 and the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) of £624 per year, which totals £1,872 for three years (3 × £624).

These fees cover the application process and provide the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) access during the student’s stay. Both the Visa Application Fee and IHS must be paid in advance as part of the application process and are non-refundable.

The new infrastructure in Ikeja, Lagos, established through the UK’s new commercial partner VFS Global, is part of an expanded network of VACs in Nigeria, which includes facilities in Abuja and Victoria Island, Lagos. The centres commenced operations on November 19, 2024, offering enhanced services for Nigerians seeking to travel to the UK.

Speaking at the launch event in Ikeja, British Deputy High Commissioner Jonny Baxter said: 

I am delighted to witness the opening of this, the largest visa application centre in Africa. Nigeria remains one of the UK’s most important partners, and we hope that VFS deliver ever improving services for those applying for visas to the UK.

Also, Marc Owen, Director of Visa, Status, and Information Services at UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), highlighted the significance, stating: 

The opening of our new VAC in Ikeja marks an exciting milestone for UKVI and VFS Global in the provision of a world-class UK visa service here in Nigeria and elsewhere across Africa. In the year to June 2024, we processed more than 225k UK visas for Nigerian nationals across all categories and this new partnership demonstrates our continued commitment to ensuring our visa services are accessible, efficient and meet the needs of all applicants.

Alok Singhal, Head of Sub-Saharan Africa at VFS Global, emphasized the company’s longstanding collaboration with UK Visas and Immigration. 

We are excited to embark on this new journey with UK Visas and Immigration here in Nigeria. We have enjoyed a long-standing partnership with UK Visas and Immigration since 2003 and look forward to now bringing travellers from Nigeria our best-in-class services, he said.

VFS Global will operate Visa Application Centres for the UK in 31 African countries as part of its expanded service provision. 

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