Nigeria’s interior minister orders immediate deactivation, withdrawal of passports from individuals who renounce nationality

The Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has directed the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) to deactivate and withdraw passports of individuals who formally renounce Nigerian citizenship, effective immediately.

The directive is contained in a statement on Saturday in Abuja, by the minister’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Babatunde Alao.

Tunji-Ojo said that the directive applied to Nigerians whose renunciation requests have been approved by President Bola Tinubu.

He cited Section 29(2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which stipulated that renunciation declarations must be registered by the President, after which the individual ceased to be a citizen.

“Once a person ceases to be a citizen, they can no longer hold sovereign documents like the Nigerian passport,” the minister stated.

He noted that the move aligned with ongoing passport and visa reforms aimed at border security and fraud prevention.

“We are committed to securing Nigeria’s borders and ensuring only eligible citizens hold travel documents,” Tunji-Ojo said.