Hello Nairaland.

I plan to go to Nigeria for my first time, Iv lived in London all my life and I am 24 years old. Can I go with just a Nigerian Passport? Will I be questioned at the airport(Heathrow/Gatwick) for having an empty passport(i.e. no Visa or Right of Abode stamp)?


Of course I will have a ticket to board the plane.

Thanks.

u have to travel with your british and nigerian cos when u get to heathrow and show them an empty nigerian passport they will ask you for proof of ur right to live here. i mean even if u were able to get to nigeria how would you come back to london with only a empty nigerian passport.

anyway this is what i do - travel with both when u get to MMA they will stamp ur nigerian passport.

hope this answers ur question.

f_maks:

Hello Nairaland.

I plan to go to Nigeria for my first time, Iv lived in London all my life and I am 24 years old. Can I go with just a Nigerian Passport? Will I be questioned at the airport(Heathrow/Gatwick) for having an empty passport(i.e. no Visa or Right of Abode stamp)?


Of course I will have a ticket to board the plane.

Thanks.

Dont you have any relatives that travel to Nigeria Often that can
advise you

Best Advise, Use your British Passport, Get your visa for 3 month (£90)
and hold your Nigerian passport with you,


Anyway i am going back to Nigeria this Month, if you need advise
just message me with you email addy,

if you have got two passports surely u would not need a nigerian visa as well with a nigerian passport.

Hi f_maks,

*assuming* you have a British passport then its very straightforward, when you arrive at UK airport present your Nigerian passport at check in and going through immigration present your British Passport.

When leaving Nigeria, present your British Passport at check in and present both passports when going through immigration and they will only stamp your Nigerian passport and when you get to London present your British passport

Simple, i've been doing this for years and never a problem

Thank you (Cream 2, Martinosi and Ada24) for your replies. I applied for my first British passport last week and Iv been told it could take up to 6 weeks. I urgently need to be in Nigeria in two weeks and worried I won't receive my passport by then.

Apparently, Im going to have to go in for an interview before I get my British Passport as well, don't know how much time that will add.

Thanks

no offence poster but why have u never applied for a british passport b4 - what do u use as ID? anyway if u need it urgently I would advise you to maybe look into getting an emergency travel document cos the worse thing would be to travel to nigeria and get stuck there - i'm a bit surprised no one in ur family has advised you about being able to travel to nigeria with a british and nigerian passport visa free in both. All i know is that when you get to heathrow they will def ask to see ur british passport cos they will want to know how you have been living in the UK if ur nigerian passport is empty. When you are coming back they will ask to see your Nigerian passport and British passport. If you don't have a british passport and empty nigerian passport u will not leave nigeria.

if i were you i would look into whether u could change the date on ur ticket. try and get that british passport cos when ur coming back to london the queue for non- eu passports is just too long.

hope this helps

f_maks:

I plan to go to Nigeria for my first time, Iv lived in London all my life and I am 24 years old. Can I go with just a Nigerian Passport? Will I be questioned at the airport(Heathrow/Gatwick) for having an empty passport(i.e. no Visa or Right of Abode stamp)?

Why not? if you do not plan on returning to UK. You're going back to your country, you have a Nigerian passport, nobody would stop you, they'll be happy to let you go, but of course you'll be questioned, not detained and your fingerprints taken to prevent re-entering.

But if have genuine documents with you to prove you're a British citizen e.g. (1) UK Birth Certificate, and proof you've lived there for more than 10years or all your life as there is a separate entitlement for any such UK-born child to be registered as British if he or she lives in the United Kingdom until age 10, irrespective of parent's (or child's) immigration status, (2) a Driver's License, and most importantly (3) a Certificate of Registration as a British Citizen from the Home Office, (all these can be easily and quickly verified) and then of course there's your British accent, then your fingerprints would not be taken, you just explain to them you haven't had time to apply for your British passport and you urgently need to travel to Nigeria. A lot of British and US citizens who's never had reasons to travel out of their country don't have Passports.

If you intend on returning to UK, you will however have to go through the hassles of the British High Commission in Nigeria to apply for a British Passport as you cannot travel with a Driver's License or Birth Certificate from Nigeria and this might take some time. Wouldn't it be better to present your documents to and have your Passport stamped by the Home Office before you embark on your journey?