₦airaland Forum

Imuogo: Hi guys,

I recently lost my e-passport in the UK with a valid tier4 visa due to expire in Jan 2013. I have called the Nigerian High Commission here in the UK and they say I have to return to Nigeria to get a new passport. Please can someone advise me on what the process is like in Nigeria? Also any one with knowledge about Visa (tier4 general) replacement with the British embassy in Nigeria should please shed more light. Currently, working on my dissertation and things are tough for me right now.

Any general advice will be much appreciated!

Thanks.

You need to contact the police and the UKBA and report it, that will help you get re-issued in Nigeria. If you have the photocopy of the visa or the passport take it along with you to report or email it to UKBA.

nakita: I won't go

This coming from visa agent? Indeed.

mohumyta: News broke on Wednesday about a Nigerian refugee claimant named Francis Ojo Ogunrinde, who happens to be gay. Or so he claims.

Last summer a senior Canadian immigration officer rejected the 40-year-old Nigerian’s refugee application, acknowledging that even though conditions for LGBT people are not “favourable” in Nigeria (where being gay is illegal and in 12 states punishable by death) she simply wasn’t “convinced” he was a homosexual. It turns out Ogunrinde’s letters from and photos of his alleged boyfriend weren’t steamy or provocative enough to activate the immigration officer’s gaydar. And being from Nigeria and all, he probably didn’t know a single lyric from Rent. Case closed.

Or maybe not.

MORE FROM MACLEANS:

Last month, a federal judge named James Russell ordered that the officer reopen the case and give Ogunrinde’s allegedly dubious sexuality closer consideration. According to Postmedia News, the judge ruled that the officer “erred by failing to consider the ‘complete picture before her,’ and ordered that Ogunrinde’s claim get a second look in a case that raises questions about the extent to which immigration officers should be probing the bedroom activities of claimants.” Makes sense to me.

If only he had stopped there.

“At the same time,” Russell wrote, “the acts and behaviours which establish a claimant’s homosexuality are inherently private.” “When evaluating claims based on sexual orientation, officers must be mindful of the inherent difficulties in proving that a claimant has engaged in any particular sexual activities.”

The problem here isn’t a lack of mindfulness in proving someone’s sexuality: it’s in the belief that a person’s sexuality is something you need to prove in the first place. Yes, of course gay people have gay sex, but having gay sex—or any sex at all—is not a prerequisite to gayness (unless of course Judge Russell doesn’t believe in gay virgins, or virgins of any kind). And it isn’t necessarily proof either.

What is? Two words: “I’m gay.”

Not “I’m gay and last night I watched Glee and sodomized somebody. Here’s a photograph.” Just “I’m gay.”

Straight people do not, and should not, have to prove they are straight. Neither should homosexuals.

But what if saying “I’m gay” isn’t good enough? What if our borders are suddenly flooded with self-proclaimed homosexual refugees from homophobic countries? Well then hopefully like Ogunrinde, those claimants will have photographs of and letters from their respective same sex partners or testimonies of friends and gay organizations confirming their sexuality. That, you’d think, would be enough.

Unfortunately–at least in Ogunrinde’s case–it wasn’t. Why? Because a sizable portion of our society still believes that a person’s sexuality can be “established” (to use Judge Russell’s words) not by his identity or his relationships, but by the “particular sexual activities” in which he engages.

In the end, I’m not suggesting our immigration officers blindly approve refugee applications, and throw all investigation to the wind. But it would be nice if their reservations about letting people cross our borders were just as strong when it came to peering into their bedrooms.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/are-you-gay--prove-it-.html

This is interesting. . . . playing 'g[i]a[/i]y' card whether true or not should not be used to gain immigration status, it will set a bad example, if he is granted an asylum because of it then the flood gate is opened for more dodgy claims from people.

mevisbleek: The fact is that we are black. Anything that happens in the Black community is blown out of proportion. Go and see what Mexicans are doing and how they have messed up their country but are u hearing their name like that in the International Scene? How about America that is the number 1 consumer of Cocaine in the World, who is criticizing them for that? Nobody. So my fellow Nigerians our skin color has been downgraded within the International Community.

Playing race card will not solve the problem. How about Nigerians in South Africa, Ghana or even in the Nigeria, are we not scamming each other? Does yahoo yahoo boys/419ners target only foreigners?

Yes some of the allegations leveled against Nigerians are blown out of proportion but fundamentally its true.

Chuks84: Thanks. My uncle's company is actaully based in brazil and has a branch in Nigeria here. He says [b]he has provided cover letters for 3 people for their masters. [/b]I only hope it will suffice. Its too late for me to start transferring money to my acct. It will mean me applying by the 20th of august. I only hope the cover letter will suffice. Thanks again Just wise.

Hmmmmmm. . . this is the last thing i will say about this as i don't want to discourage you.


Cover letter is not the same as financial sponsorship, that doesn't come into picture here.

The UK student rule stated that your uncle can not sponsor you and if you want to know if his company qualifies to be called an international organisation or company then Google that company's name, the result will tell you more.

Good luck

Chuks84: justwise sorry to trouble you, but what exactly constitutes an 'international organisation'?

The clue is in the name.. . . . .company/organisation with branches in other countries.

Chuks84: Thanks for your response. My heart is beating erratically now. I misinterpreted the part about official financial sponsor. Is it possible for this same uncle to serve as a guardian. If so, what other documents do I need to provide? I have already paid my advance instalment fees. Please advice.

I don't know how your uncle will serve as your legal guardian as an adult, if you are under 16yrs of age then that i will make sense.

If your uncle is willing to sponsor you then let him transfer the money into your account, that is the only way you can go around it.

roadmap001: Keep you mouth shout you all are compound idiot you all talk like you are saints, If you would not advise the guy don't criticise him you all av the evil you do or have done in the best! Well must of your av not travelled out of your home town talk less of the country so you guys don't know how dramatic it is outside the border! O boy I would not advise you but just don't let this idiots here discourage you God would forgive your evil did and would mk a way out cos there is always a way but I would not give you that way out cos you did never come out straight like a man! It you and not your friend you should av stand and face your problems instead of hiding! Wish you best of luck!

Oh please shut up you miserable fool!, if things are bad outside Nigeria then come back home with your dignity and not stealing from businesses out there.

Chuks84: Just wise, thanks for all the work you are doing on this forum. I intend to use an uncle's company as my official financial sponsor. However, during my application to the school I stated that I would be paying for the fees my self, this might be reflected in the CAS letter. Hope this won't cause any problems for me. Do I also need to present a bank statement showing the amount in my uncles company account? Also, does my uncle's company fit into the criteria of official financial sponsors. Thanks.

You can't use your uncle's company as an official sponsor neither can you use his company's bank account for anything related to student visa application.

If your uncles' company is a multinational one then you may stand a chance.

Can we contact those universities to know if they ever heard of you or work with you?

Donxavier: Congrats. Almost 3 weeks. that seems to be the standard time if nothing is wrong with your application. This interview thing self does anyone know what to expect? are they going to give one interview dates now? How do we prepare for the interview? Too bad I'm applying when the new rules take effect

The whole idea of the interview is to test your level of English Language, questions about your course, plans after your graduation, finance etc. . . i don't think you should any problem answering questions in those areas.

salsera: EmmaIK
Do another 28days, as long as your resumption date is still far.
But note application can take up to 3weeks with BDHC and interview session are likely to start from end of July. Thats my take

Okay
My Summary
Submitted:26June
Collected:13July, VFS application status changed on 12July
Documents:As required on UKBA website, school also sent a helpful link for filling the forms


Hints - please buy one of those clear files to put your documents in. D tin wey my eye when i submit during rain, i no fit wish anyone. Documents were wet passport sef fall through envelope and I had umbrella oh. Those security guards still insisted on seeing our forms whilst it was raining cats and alsatians.

Thanks for good advice - keep it Justwise. May God reward you for your consistency

A big congratulations, i'm happy for you, enjoy your time.

Donxavier: Evidence of official financial sponsor or Government Sponsor

If your Tier 4 sponsor is giving you any any official financial sponsorship, it can include details of this on your confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS). You do not need to provide any documents as evidence of this official financial sponsorship. If you do not know whether your CAS contains this information, you must ask your Tier 4 sponsor.

In any other circumstances where you are being given official financial sponsorship, you must provide send us a letter of confirmation from your official financial sponsor. The letter must be on the organisation's official letter-headed paper or stationery, and must bear the organisation's official stamp. It must show:

your name ;
the official financial sponsor's name and contact details;
the date of the letter;
the length of the sponsorship; and
the amount of money that the official financial sponsor is giving to you, or a statement that it will cover all of your course fees and living costs.

Chairman, YES your State government can sponsor you if they are ready to meet the above requirements.

Makomen Omonkhomion what Donxavier got for you here is the content of that link, i couldn't get it since as i'm browsing with my phone. The term 'Government' here was not specified whether its Federal, state or local Govt as we have it in Nigeria. I know that some state Govts in Nigeria have sponsored some students to the UK before, if you can get the above requirements then you will be fine.

Cavenchy: Absolutely right, the ukba has no access to statements not provided by the applicant, and the bank is bound to only confirm the authenticity of the statement submitted by applicant and/or a confirmation of the applicant's present balance being above ukba recommended limit.

. . . and my question to you guys is this. . . which other detail again is hidden after you might have given them all [/b]your details? After they might have verified all you have given them. . what else is hidden?

The embassy is not calling the bank to ask for a fresh/new document, they are verifying what you have given them [b]already, yes they have the right to do that, there is nothing like. . . the bank has no right to disclose your info to the embassy.

Donxavier: . Well, Justwise what do you think?

if he can not fix those 2 dates then he should wait till the money matures again

[quote author=boss-man]For record purpose, no bank will release someones statement to such organisation when the request is not backed up by a court order or regulatory body's request. The best the bank could do is to confirm the authenticity of the statement or the current account balance. So i think the earlier suggestion could very much work.[/quote]Releasing what exactly? You have given the embassy every detail of yourself willingly and signed it. All the embassy is doing is to verify those details and if the bank refused to corporate then they refuse you a visa and there nothing you can do about it.

Cavenchy: @Justwise, taking a 2nd look at this situation don't u think he can print the statement and set the start and end dates as 11th May to 23rd June, so that the closing balance is stated on 23rd june and its presently not up to a month after then(so that he can apply before 23rd July)? Then he prints oanda conversion for 23rd june?
Can Ukba actually find out from the bank, details of his transactions after the closing date of balance on his statement?

Again, this is just an objective consideration post regarding this situation, and as such is not an 'Advice' to Emma but open for deliberation, in otherwords, Emma na suggestion oh, no do am till others don critically analyse. My best advice would be wait till it clocks 28 days again cos I don't think 9th/10th august will b too late to apply depending on ur course start date (most schools start in september)

How will he be able to set those two dates? Especially setting the closing date on 23rd, That is the issue.

[quote author=Pepe-A]But like I said,I've been travelling for over 6yrs,still without no job then and still on the visit visa.I was a housewife.Even after my seperation from my ex before Divorce proceedings,I still applied as unemployed and on visit visa.[/quote]Who sponsors the trip?

naiko: @vicjustice, you wrote that you cant apply when you dont have a job?i have applied with my documents for my wife (a full time housewife ooo) and she was issued visa, any difference form her case? another question this 28 days of money maturity in the account,is it 28 working days or just 28 days??

She is your wife and you are sponsoring the trip, ask her to apply alone without your financial help and without job and lets see how it goes.

Olupraise: Oga justwise wetin I do wet you no answer my question. Abeg o.
Thanks

Since an agent is doing it for you then you need to direct these questions to that person, i wouldn't want to do their job for them.

EmmaIK: Afternoon Justwise and all.
I am in a tricky situation concerning my maintenance fund. I had the full amount in my Personal Account for about 2 months(meeting the 28day requirement) but due to unforseen circumstances after about 60 days in my account, the funds dropped below the required level. But about a week later i was able to make up the funds back to the required level.
My question is, Can i still apply using that sam account or do i have to wait another 28 days.

@Justwise; if you haave a personal email, let me know so i can send you a copy of the bank statement.

Thank you.

Donxavier gave you the right answer.

AjanleKoko: I don't particularly think going out of the country is a bad idea.
But people go out of the country, spend lots of money on accumulating degrees I consider to be useless, and come back to the country - to pursue jobs all over again.

Fact is, the schools have figured this out, and have focused on marketing to Nigerians. That is the part I don't like. I personally think we're being exploited, especially now that they're on this so-called clampdown on immigration nonsense.

I really don't know how you come up with some things here, exploiting Nigerians in what sense? If people like you are in a position to carry-out recruitment in any company then people's CVs will be in the bin without been looked at because for you their degrees are useless.

AjanleKoko: MBA in IT is useful for what?
I'd really like to know what kind of skills you'd possess with an MBA in IT and no work experience. Or what anybody would employ you to do. To 'manage' IT?
You can't manage IT if you don't have fundamental IT experience. You can't manage what you don't know. It's just like people studying for an MBA in Oil and Gas (some UK universities are offering that also!), thinking that would land you a job in the oil and gas sector.

Someone who hasn't even learnt how to do anything, what is the use of 'management' skill to that person? Most of the UK MBA graduates just show up back in Nigeria with little or no work experience. Many end up as bank markets or telco customer service personnel if they're lucky. Some take up music and fashion designing, which begs the question why they bothered to study MBA when they could have just as well have studied fashion or music.

At least, healthcare is an area where Nigeria is sorely lacking in personnel. People who studied engineering in Nigeria relocate to the US and end up becoming nurses and physiotherapists. That alone should tell you something. Oh, and by the way, there are healthcare related admin or management courses offered to people who have foundation medical degrees. Like the master in public health, and in medical administration. I'd be surprised if they allow you to study for those degrees with any bachelor's degree.

As far as I am concerned, it would have been better if you went to the UK to study art, music, or even fashion, than some of the nondescript degrees collected by Nigerians. At least then you would have a skill. All I am saying is, don't waste your time and money.

Not having work experience does not mean that the degree you have is useless, its wrong to tag any degree useless no matter the area you got thw degree in, a fresh graduate has to start somewhere to build that experience, people take work experience programs while doing that degree and that counts as work experience, studying any medical course does not mean you will get job without work experience.

Dapto: @Justwise,pls the latest news release from the UKBA site can be found here
www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/newsarticles/2012/july/18-student-interviews?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ukborderagency+%28UK+Border+Agency+latest+news%29.
Pls do u think,this will come into effect immediately?

The interview for student visa applicants may start from 30th of this month, it could be by phone or in person. just saw an update on that now.

So basically you should be able to answer question in area such as your education history, study and post-study plans, and financial circumstances.

Skii: Yes o...i dey o somewhere in the cold and sunless north ...no mind me o, i'm on other threads causing mischief...NL helps me detox when all the coursework gets "here"...

Really appreciative of the effort you put in for people regarding their UK admissions...I almost feel like we should have lunch or something...just a way of showing my gratitude

North of England or UK?

[quote author=chiz bals ]Goomorning'am new on this tread. And u guys r doing great.just applied for my visa and every thing is ok but am really worried on my maintenance fee which is supposed to b 7200 pounds cos its outer London buh I paib accomdation dat is 3280 pounds to remain 3920 pounds which I kept in my account for 28days.just want to if am ok.the 3280 is reflected in my cas tho.[/quote]Since you have submitted there is no point trying to tell you anything else because it may not help you. There is nothing you can do now no matter what you re told. Fingers crossed and good luck.

AjanleKoko: At least 90% of degrees they get from the UK are useless. 90 percent are MBAs, the rest a smattering of something between MSC in IT or Msc in International Business. Do you know how many people I know with these degrees, still pounding the streets in Naija, millions of Naira later?



In my opinion, medical degrees are probably the most useful, when you're talking degrees. All over the world, even in Nigeria, there's still some demand for doctors, nurses, pharmacists, etc. If you take the pains, you can prolly make a decent living for yourself.

90% of graduate degrees studied abroad by Nigerians end in 'Management'. Meaning, no particular skill is taught.

This is strange thing coming from somebody like you, what area of IT are you referring to? Tell me any sector that can function in this present days without IT, any?. I don't know where you get your 90% from but its highly random figure and to say that there is no skill in Management is false because even the ability to manage anything at all is 'skill' in itself.

Having the ability to manage a successful business is a 'skill' that very few people have.

Everybody will not be a medical doctor, doctors/hospitals need to be managed and it takes skills.

kunlaxo: Guy u make more than a sence..I lost a very close friend of mine (school mate@Unilag)..just 2months ago under their hash weather after accumulating Lots of pally Bsc Unilag..Mba UK..ACA..Acca uk..CIS..he complained of cold in the evening before he died and in the morning he died..The guy was genious...so painful infact i cried.....vanity upon vanity.

What loads of rubbish! How many foreign students have died of cold in the UK?

Anyway may the soul of your friend rest in peace.

AjanleKoko: Naijas sef.
Going about accumulating[b] useless degrees.[/b] All in a bid to escape their destinies

Any idea where one can get useful degree?