How To Regularize Foreign Students Permit In Nigeria

It is no doubt a reality that there are lots of foreigners schooling in Nigeria; these foreign students did not just enter Nigeria to school; they must have obtained their entry permit /visa through Nigeria embassy or consulate in their home country.

Apart from entry permit, the law established that foreigners in Nigeria should obtain permit that will spell the reason and duration of stay. This is not only applicable in Nigeria but all over the world.

Obtaining foreign students permit in Nigeria demands that the student concerned will visit the office of Nigeria Immigration Service in any of the states or the headquarters of Immigration Service in Abuja for directives.

Permit given to foreigners schooling in Nigerian is Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Alien Card. This permit is not specifically for foreign students but for foreigners staying in Nigeria.

However, Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Alien Card are categorized according to your mission in Nigeria.

The categories of forms meant for Nigeria residence permit are explained below.

CR (Concessionary form):  This form is for foreign students, missionaries, non ECOWAS African Nationals, and Cameroonians.

Foreign students applying for Nigeria residence permit should ensure that they did not fill any other CERPAC form apart from Concessionary form.

Other types of forms for different types of Nigeria permits are; 

AO forms: This very form is specifically for foreigners and persons with classified status.

AR forms: This very form is for the highly placed in the society. Persons like diplomats, government officials, non-governmental organization and others belong to the category of people who apply and receive this permit.

Note that this category of permit can only be applied at the office of the Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service.

 

General Directives on how to apply for CERPAC

Foreigners who want to apply for CERPAC apart from the diplomatic permit should go to the office of Nigeria Immigration Service in their state to obtain the category of form meant for the permit they want to apply for.

Most Immigration office collects cash for these services, however, if Immigration Service Command of your state doesn’t collect cash in their office, find out the bank account number meant for such services, pay and submit the teller for such payment to the office.

If Immigration command of your state has adopted online registration, you have to register online, pay the prescribed fee and scan the necessary documents during registration.

Ensure you submit the print out and acknowledgment slip of the transaction to Immigration office as soon as you are done.

Those for the diplomatic permit should obtain theirs in the Office of Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service in National Headquarters Abuja following the same guideline.    

·        Application letter from the student requesting regularization of stay in Nigeria 

The student applying for this type of stay should write to Nigeria Immigration Service Command indicating the reason for the stay.

·        Letter of recommendation from institution and acceptance of Immigration responsibility.

·        A copy of admission letter

·         Acceptance letter.

·        Evidence of payment of school fees.

·        Photocopies of relevant pages of passport including the visa page.

It is important that foreign students in Nigeria regularize their student permit; this will save them the embarrassment that can occur if the authorities concerned demands for it.

Even if the authorities did not demand for it, an emergency can come up leading to requesting for the identity of persons within and permit of expatriates.