The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has announced the rollout of an enhanced passport tracking feature.

The update posted by the Service on X on Thursday followed rising public clamour over delays in passport issuance and collection.

According to the Service, it had observed that hundreds of passports produced had remained uncollected, leading to increasing complaints from applicants.

The updated system introduces a new status—“PRODUCED (PASSPORT PRODUCED, READY FOR COLLECTION)”—to the existing passport tracker.

The feature is intended to give applicants clearer visibility on when their passports are ready for pickup or courier delivery, thereby reducing uncertainty around processing timelines.

The development followed weeks of heightened criticisms from passport applicants, including prominent Nigerians, who have taken to social media to express frustration with the process.

Public outcry on X had seen users report delays stretching into several months, as well as allegations of deliberate bottlenecks within the system.

However, the Service said the new tracker status would help applicants distinguish between production delays and passports that are ready but yet to be retrieved.

“This update enhances the existing tracking system, and helps applicants stay informed about timelines for passports produced and awaiting collection (for physical collection) or produced but not delivered (for courier delivery),” the Service stated.

One of the most prominent complaints came from investigative journalist Fisayo Soyombo, who shared his experience of waiting over six months for a passport renewal, despite completing payment and biometric capture in July 2025.

His post, which attracted over 1,400 likes and hundreds of reposts, criticised the immigration process and accused the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, of failing to deliver promised reforms.

“It is now six months since I paid and applied for the renewal of my international passport,” Soyombo wrote, describing the reforms as “gallery play and public sentiment manipulation.”

In response, the NIS stated that Soyombo’s passport had already been produced and was ready for delivery. The Service added that delays can sometimes arise from incomplete applications or technical issues on the platform.

The NIS, last year, announced a sweeping increase in the prices of the country’s passports, citing the need to improve efficiency and quality of the document.

For a 32-page passport with 5-year validity, the price was increased from ₦50,000 to ₦ 100,000.

According to the Service, a 64-page passport with 10-year validity now costs ₦200,000, a 100% increase from the ₦100,000 fee Nigerians were paying before the increment, which took effect from September 1, 2025.

That increment came as the second within 12 months. Earlier in August 2024, the Service announced a price hike that saw the price of the 32-page passport jump from ₦35,000 to ₦50,000. (Channels)

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