*VFS Global announces Nigerian residents travelling to the United Kingdom can now book appointments to submit their visa applications at firm鈥檚 newly opened Premium Application Centres in Enugu, Enugu State, and Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital

Alexander Davis | 绿帽献妻

In a bid to effectively cater to the growing outbound travel to the United Kingdom (UK), VFS Global has announced that Nigerian residents travelling to the foreign country can now book appointments to submit their visa applications at its newly opened Premium Application Centres in Enugu, Enugu State, and Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital.

Onyinye Madu of the British High Commission Communications Office, Abuja, FCT, who noted this in a statement Monday, May 5, 2025, said the two centres are in addition to the state-of-the-art Visa Application Centres in Abuja, Ikeja (Lagos) and on Victoria Island (Lagos) which the UK Mission stated has been operational since November 2024.

The statement noted: 鈥淲e are pleased to announce that Customers can now book appointments on https://visa.vfsglobal.com/nga/en/gbr/ to visit Hotel Presidential in Port Harcourt or Omedel Luxury Hotel in Enugu to submit their applications and enrol biometrics for the summer season. 鈥�

According the British High Commission (BHC) in Nigeria, the UK remains a popular destination for travellers across Africa, with Nigeria in the top four nationalities by volume for UK visit visas, accounting for 6% of the global total.

Speaking on the development, Rt. Sir Hon Lord David Hanson, Minister of State at Home Office, said: 鈥淭he government is pleased to be able to reopen the Premium Visa Application Centres in both Port Harcourt and Enugu. In 2024 we received more than 230,000 visa applications from Nigerian nationals across all visa routes.

鈥淭hese new premium application centres will provide greater convenience for applicants in and around Enugu and Rivers State demonstrating the importance of the UK 鈥� Nigeria relationship in these markets as well as Nigeria as a whole.鈥欌��

In his remarks also, Mr. Alok Singhal, Head-Sub-Saharan Africa, VFS Global, stated: 鈥淲e are pleased to open the additional, conveniently located touchpoints for our UK visa customers in the form of the recently opened Premium Application Centres in Enugu and Port Harcourt, Nigeria which helps us cater to a larger number of travellers to the UK.

鈥淥ur customers will continue to enjoy the same comfort, convenience, and best-in-class services at these locations that they do at our Visa Application Centres in Abuja and Lagos.鈥�

The statement also examined the Nigerian visa applicants, who submit their documents and enrol biometrics at the Premium Application Centres can now enjoy a number of complementary value-added services offered by VFS Global.

These include document upload assistance, notification services on the status of their applications and courier return of documents.

It further stated that prospective travelers can book the Keep My Passport While Applying service in advance on our Web site which allows them to keep their passports once their application is submitted and biometrics have been enrolled.

Customers will only need to re-submit their passports when a decision is reached.

BHC noted that as a partner to UK Visas and Immigration since 2003, VFS Global offered visa services in 58 countries before the new contract and was awarded the contract to provide UK visa services in 142 countries worldwide in 2023.

UK Premium Application Centres in Nigeria

• Enugu: Ground floor, Omedel Luxury Hotel, Link Road, Enugu
• Port Harcourt: Hall 1, First Floor, Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt
• Website: https://visa.vfsglobal.com/nga/en/gbr/
• Timing: 8 AM to 5 p.m.

About VFS Global

As the global leader in trusted technology services, empowering secure mobility for governments and citizens, VFS Global embraces technological innovation including Generative AI to support governments and diplomatic missions worldwide.

The company manages non-judgmental and administrative tasks related to applications for visa, passport, and consular services for its client governments, increasing productivity and enabling them to focus entirely on the critical task of assessment.

With a responsible approach to technology development, adoption and integration, the company prioritises ethical practices and sustainability while serving as the trusted partner to 69 client governments.

Operating over 3,500 Application Centres in 158 countries, VFS Global has efficiently processed more than 309 million applications since 2001.

Headquartered in Zurich and Dubai and majority owned through investment funds managed by Black-stone Inc, along with minority stakeholders including Swiss-based Kuoni and Hugentobler Foundation, the statement added.