Nigerians and other African nationals seeking a Schengen Visa to enter the European Union will now have to pay an extra £10, as the visa fee has increased from £80 to £90, News About Nigeria reports.
This change, announced by the EU Commission, will take effect from June 11, 2024.
The latest data released by Schengen Visa Statistics over the weekend highlighted the financial impact on African nationals.
In 2023 alone, African nationals faced 704,000 negative responses to their visa requests, resulting in a collective expenditure of €56.3 million on non-refundable visa application fees.
“This means that €56.3 million went up in smoke, considering that visa application fees are not refundable,” the report stated.
For Nigeria specifically, 34.80 percent of the 1,825 visa applications were rejected, meaning Nigerian citizens spent approximately €3.4 million on rejected Schengen visa applications.
The report also noted that Morocco had the highest number of Schengen visa applications for the year under review.
“African nationals spent €56.3 million in visa application fees in 2023, representing 43 percent of all expenses; rejection rates in 2023 were especially high for African and Asian countries, which bear 90 percent of all expenses. Expenditures are to increase by 12.5 percent starting next week as the EU raises visa fees for adults from €80 to €90 on June 11, following a recent decision by the EU Commission,” the report added.
A study by the EU Observer revealed that Schengen visa rejections generated €130 million in 2023, up from €105 million the previous year, indicating an upward trend in both visa expenses and rejection rates.
Marta Foresti, founder of LAGO Collective, commented on the issue of visa inequality, stating, “Visa inequality has very tangible consequences and the world’s poorest pay the price. You can think of the costs of rejected visas as ‘reverse remittances,’ money flowing from poor to rich countries. We never hear about these costs when discussing aid or migration, it is time to change that.”
