The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has announced plans to launch a Single Travel Emergency Passport (STEP) to assist Nigerians abroad whose passports are lost, stolen, or expired, enabling them to return home safely.
The new document will replace the existing Emergency Travel Certificate (ETC) and will be issued at designated Nigerian embassies and consulates. Kemi Nanna Nandap, Comptroller-General of Immigration, disclosed this during the Joint Thematic Meeting of the Khartoum, Rabat, and Niamey Processes, co-hosted by Nigeria and France.
According to a statement by ACI Kenneth Akinlabi, the Service’s Public Relations Officer, the STEP will serve as a single-entry travel document that provides secure and verifiable identification for Nigerians returning home. The initiative aligns with the Service’s reforms to enhance border governance, identity management, and compliance with international migration standards.
The meeting brought together key stakeholders, including the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), NAPTIP, ECOWAS, the African Union, and European representatives, to address issues of migrant smuggling and protection of vulnerable migrants.
The STEP introduction follows other modernisation efforts by the NIS, including a digital platform for the Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card (CERPAC) and a centralised passport personalisation system capable of producing up to 5,000 passports daily, significantly reducing processing time.
