SERAP Says Passport Fee Increase Breaches Citizens’ Rights, Urges FG to Reverse Decision

SERAP Says Passport Fee Increase Breaches Citizens’ Rights, Urges FG to Reverse Decision

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately reverse the recently announced passport fee hike by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), describing the increase as arbitrary, unlawful, and a violation of citizens’ rights.

The NIS had last week announced that, effective September 1, 2025, Nigerians would pay ₦100,000 for a 32-page passport booklet with five-year validity and ₦200,000 for a 64-page booklet with ten-year validity. The move comes less than a year after a similar increment in September 2024.

In a letter dated August 30, 2025, and signed by SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the group argued that the hike would effectively deny millions of poor and vulnerable Nigerians access to passports, thereby infringing on their constitutional rights.

“The unlawfully high fees represent a discriminatory denial of access to passports for millions of socially and economically disadvantaged Nigerians, and an unlawful restriction of their broader citizenship rights,” the letter stated.

SERAP maintained that the new passport fees are excessive, disproportionate, and inconsistent with Chapters 2 and 4 of the 1999 Constitution, which safeguard fundamental rights and outline the directive principles of state policy.

The group cautioned that the hike would deepen the economic hardship faced by citizens, particularly those already struggling to make ends meet.

“The increased charges will have the greatest impact on Nigerians at the lowest rungs of the economy,” SERAP noted, stressing that Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo and Comptroller General of Immigration Kemi Nandap failed to take into account the financial realities of millions of citizens before approving the increment.

The organisation further warned that it would take legal action if the government does not reverse the decision within seven days.