US to Transfer Routine Visa Processing From Abuja to Lagos, 24 Other African Cities From August 1
The United States has announced a major realignment of its visa operations across Africa, with routine visa processing currently handled in Abuja set to be transferred to Lagos from August 1, 2026.
The development is part of a broader restructuring by the U.S. Department of State (DoS), which said the move is aimed at strengthening national security, promoting more uniform screening and adjudication standards, and improving operational efficiency across its diplomatic missions.
According to the department, Abuja is among 25 African cities whose routine visa services will be relocated to designated regional processing hubs.
Other affected cities include Antananarivo (Madagascar), Asmara (Eritrea), Bamako (Mali), Banjul (The Gambia), Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo), Bujumbura (Burundi), Conakry (Guinea), Cotonou (Benin), Durban (South Africa), Freetown (Sierra Leone), Gaborone (Botswana), Harare (Zimbabwe), Juba (South Sudan), Libreville (Gabon), Lilongwe (Malawi), Lusaka (Zambia), Maputo (Mozambique), Maseru (Lesotho), Mbabane (Eswatini), N’Djamena (Chad), Niamey (Niger), Nouakchott (Mauritania), Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) and Windhoek (Namibia).
Under the new arrangement, Lagos will serve as the regional processing centre for routine visa applications originating from Abuja, while other regional hubs across the continent include Abidjan, Accra, Addis Ababa, Cape Town, Dakar, Dar es Salaam, Djibouti, Johannesburg, Kampala, Kigali, Kinshasa, Lomé, Luanda, Malabo, Monrovia, Nairobi, Port Louis, Praia and Yaoundé.
Checks indicate that visa applicants from Mali will process their applications through Dakar, Senegal, while applicants from Benin Republic and Niger Republic will use the U.S. mission in Lomé, Togo.
The Department of State said citizens and residents of the affected countries seeking U.S. immigrant and non-immigrant visas from August 1 would be required to schedule appointments and pay their visa application fees at their designated regional processing centres.
The department explained that the restructuring follows a long-standing practice of consolidating visa operations into regional hubs, noting that similar arrangements have already been successfully implemented in parts of Africa and Europe.
“President Trump is putting America and Americans first by strengthening national security, cutting government waste and ensuring government works in the interests of the American people,” the department said.
It added that the Department of State continually reviews its overseas operations to ensure they align with U.S. national priorities while improving service delivery.
According to the statement, the new arrangement will strengthen security by ensuring more consistent screening, vetting and adjudication standards, while also enhancing operational efficiency.
The department stressed that the realignment of routine visa services would not affect the operations of U.S. embassies and consulates in the affected countries, adding that all visa applications would continue to undergo rigorous security screening and vetting in line with existing U.S. immigration policies.