By John Ikani
The United States embassy says the drop box service for Nigerian students seeking to renew their visas in the country is now available.
Announcing this in a statement issued on Thursday, the embassy said Nigerian students schooling in the US can apply for renewal “without an interview when you return to Nigeria this summer”.
The embassy went on to note that qualification for the service requires that the applicant “must be physically in Nigeria renewing a student visa that is still valid or has expired within the past 24 months.”
Also, persons applying must be renewing his/her visa either to “continue participation in the same major course of study even if at a different institution; or attend the same institution even if in a different major course of study”.
The application can be done in Abuja or Lagos.
HOW TO APPLY
Abuja applicants are expected to visit www.ustraveldocs.com/ng and “follow instructions to complete your application and visit a designated DHL facility to drop off your application”.
The application is expected to be accompanied by the following documents: A printout of your submission letter (printed from www.ustraveldocs.com/ng); completed DS-160; an approved I-20; receipt for your I-901 SEVIS fee; GTBank (MRV) receipt for your visa fee; your passport containing the expired student visa (if that passport is expired, a current valid passport is also required); and passport photograph.
For Lagos applicants, the embassy asked applicants to visit “www.ustraveldocs.com/ng and follow the instructions to make an interview waiver appointment for a student visa”.
Applicants are also expected to “come in person to the U.S. Consulate on the date and time of your appointment”.
The applicant is expected to come with the same requirements as their Abuja counterparts.
According to the statement, applicants who do not meet these criteria “should visit www.ustraveldocs.com/ng to schedule a regular appointment”.
“If someone in your family or group does not meet the qualifications above, they must schedule a regular appointment,” the statement reads.
“Each applicant must meet the qualifications individually. For instance, we cannot accept a renewal for a child because the parent qualifies under these guidelines. In that case, the child would need to schedule an appointment and come to the embassy or consulate for an interview,’’ the embassy stated.
