What Nigerians will pay for UK visas, citizenship from April

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The United Kingdom government will increase fees for a wide range of visas, residency applications and citizenship processes from April 8, 2026, with the hike affecting Nigerians and other foreign nationals seeking to visit, study, work or settle in the country.

The revised fee schedule, published by the UK Home Office and sighted by PUNCH Online on Thursday, shows increases across virtually all categories of visa applications made both inside and outside the UK, with affected categories spanning visit visas, student visas, work visas, settlement applications and naturalisation fees.

The increases, which take effect in less than two weeks, come as Nigeria remains one of the largest sources of visa applicants to the UK, with hundreds of thousands of Nigerians applying annually for visit, student and work visas.

The short-term visit visa rises from £127 to £135, while the student visa increases from £524 to £558. Nigerians seeking permanent residency will pay £3,226, up from £3,029, and those applying to naturalise as British citizens will pay £1,709, up from £1,605.

In a rare exception to the broad pattern of increases, the fee for registering a child as a British citizen is being reduced — from £1,214 to £1,000, a cut of £214. All other fees either rise or remain unchanged. Some categories, including the Tier 1 (Investor) visa and the High Potential Individual visa, are unchanged at £2,000 and £880 respectively.

Here is the full list of UK visa and immigration fees relevant to Nigerians:

VISIT VISAS

Short-term (up to 6 months): Old: £127, New: £135

Long-term (up to 2 years): Old: £475, New: £506

Long-term (up to 5 years): Old: £848, New: £903