Nigeria's contactless passport renewal system, introduced by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and the Ministry of Interior under Comptroller General Kemi Nanna Nandap and Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, is winning widespread praise from Nigerians in the United Kingdom. The system allows applicants to renew their passports from home and receive them at their doorstep within days, a stark contrast to the months-long delays and multiple trips to London previously required.
From Months to Days: A Dramatic Shift
Timileyin Gbenga, a community leader in Birmingham, recounted his previous passport renewal ordeal, which took over six months and required traveling from Birmingham to London for biometrics. When he recently helped a family member use the contactless system, the passport arrived in less than two weeks. This pattern was repeated across the country, from Birmingham to Coventry, Newport, Leeds, Essex, and London.
In Essex, Adeku Adeola Victoria completed her renewal entirely from home and received her passport roughly a week after applying. She was so impressed that she convinced a friend to apply online instead of traveling to London; her friend also received her passport within two weeks. In Newport, South Wales, Adiku Adeyemi shared a similar experience with his wife's passport, which was delivered to their home just days after registration.
Speed and Dignity Restored
The excitement among Nigerians is not just about speed but about dignity and convenience. Government services should not be endurance tests requiring citizens to sacrifice workdays, spend hundreds of pounds on transport, or navigate unnecessary bureaucracy. The reform brings service delivery closer to what citizens reasonably expect in the digital age. Mr Rufus Idowu, an automation engineer with Royal Mail and community leader in Coventry, said some Nigerians received their passports within five days. Comrade Adebayo Segun in Leeds obtained his son's passport in just four days, a timeline he described as unprecedented.
International Standards Within Reach
Dr Adekunle Shonola, president of Nigerians in Coventry and a senior lecturer in Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics at Coventry University, noted that Nigeria is finally moving closer to international standards in passport administration. He recalled the days when applicants traveled repeatedly between Coventry and London, often waiting more than six months. Now, members of his community are receiving passports within a week. Coventry resident Gbenga Ogunderu described the old process as “analog” and “backward,” contrasting it with a system that allows people to apply from home and receive passports without stress. “This is 2026. We should be doing this,” he said.
Sustainability Remains a Challenge
However, no reform should be judged solely by its launch phase. Dr Shonola believes the next challenge is ensuring the system becomes fully integrated and accessible to Nigerians everywhere, not only in the UK. Engineer Idowu emphasized sustainability, arguing that consistency will determine whether today's success becomes a permanent feature of public service delivery. Nigeria has witnessed promising reforms before, only for momentum to fade over time. The true test of the contactless passport initiative will be whether it remains efficient, reliable, and continuously improved in the years ahead.
Yet after speaking with Nigerians across the United Kingdom, one conclusion is difficult to avoid: the passport reform is doing something rare in Nigeria's public sector—it is exceeding expectations. In a country where citizens often approach government services with caution and scepticism, that achievement should not be dismissed. The stories heard were not of political slogans or official promises but of ordinary Nigerians whose lives have become a little easier because a public service finally works the way it should. Sometimes, that is what meaningful reform looks like.
Israel Fagbemigun, who recently returned from the United Kingdom, writes from Abuja.
