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U.S. Mission Announces Stricter Visa Interview Requirements for Nigerian Applicants

Published

2 years ago

April 12, 2025

The United States Mission in Nigeria has announced a significant change to the visa interview process for Nigerian applicants, introducing stricter requirements aimed at improving application accuracy and streamlining consular operations.

In a statement posted on its official website on Friday, the U.S. Mission revealed that the new guidelines will take effect from Monday, April 22, 2025, and will apply to all visa applicants attending interviews at the U.S. embassies in Abuja and Lagos.

According to the announcement, all applicants are now required to bring a DS-160 visa application form that contains a confirmation barcode number beginning with “AA” followed by two zeroes. Crucially, this barcode number must exactly match the one used to schedule the applicant’s appointment online.

“Failure to verify the alignment will result in denial of entry into the consular section or the visa interview,” the mission emphasized.

Applicants have been urged to review their documentation at least two weeks before their scheduled interview to ensure that the barcode on their DS-160 form corresponds correctly with the appointment record.

The mission also warned against reusing DS-160 forms from previous visa applications.

“You cannot reuse a DS-160 from a previous application. If your DS-160 barcode is incorrect, you must log into your AVITS account at least 10 days before your appointment to create a support ticket requesting correction of your barcode number,” the statement advised.

The U.S. Mission stated that the revised procedure is part of ongoing efforts to ensure the integrity of the visa application process and to minimize delays caused by mismatched or outdated information.

Nigerians planning to travel to the United States are encouraged to review the updated requirements carefully and make the necessary adjustments ahead of their interviews to avoid disruptions.