By Atoyebi Nike
The United States Mission in Nigeria has cautioned that visa applications will be rejected if it is suspected that the applicant intends to travel to the U.S. primarily to give birth, with the aim of securing U.S. citizenship for their child.
The warning was published on Monday through a post on the Mission’s official X handle (formerly Twitter), @USinNigeria. The statement emphasized that consular officers are mandated to deny visas in cases where there is reason to believe the applicant’s main travel objective is to deliver a baby on American soil.
“Using your visa to travel for the primary purpose of giving birth in the United States so that your child will have U.S. citizenship is not permitted. Consular officers will deny your visa application if they have reason to believe this is your intent,” the post read. It was accompanied by hashtags #VisaWiseTravelSmart and #USVisa.
An image attached to the post reinforced the message with a bold statement: “We will deny your visa if we believe your primary purpose of travel is to give birth in the United States to get U.S. citizenship for your child. This is not permitted.”
This advisory forms part of a wider public awareness effort by the U.S. government to prevent misuse of its visa system and reinforce immigration regulations.
