UK Opens New Visa Centres in Enugu and Port Harcourt

The United Kingdom has made it easier for Nigerians to apply for UK visas by opening new centres in Enugu and Port Harcourt.

The UK Home Office confirmed on Monday that the centres, located at Omedel Luxury Hotel in Enugu and Hotel Presidential in Port Harcourt, were opened to meet growing demand especially ahead of the summer travel season.

The centres are run by VFS Global, which already manages UK visa application centres in Abuja, Ikeja, and Victoria Island, Lagos. Appointments can be booked online through the VFS Global website.

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Nigeria continues to be one of the UK’s top sources of visa applications, accounting for 6% of all UK visit visa requests globally. In 2024 alone, over 230,000 applications were received from Nigerian nationals across all visa types.

UK Minister of State at the Home Office, Lord Hanson, described the move as a reflection of the strong UK–Nigeria relationship.

Alok Singhal, Head of Sub-Saharan Africa at VFS Global, said the expansion would help reach more customers. He assured applicants of “the same comfort, convenience, and best-in-class services” as in the Lagos and Abuja centres.

The service includes extra features such as document upload assistance, real-time status updates, passport retention, and courier delivery of documents.