The United States Embassy Abuja has suspended all visa appointments, advising applicants to check their emails for updates on new dates.
The announcement was made via the official 𝕏 handle of the U.S. mission in Nigeria on Thursday.
According to the statement, visa services in Abuja are temporarily halted, while operations at the U.S. Consulate General Lagos will continue. Emergency services for American citizens remain available by appointment.
The move follows a recent directive from the United States Department of State, which authorised non-essential government staff and their families to leave Abuja due to rising security concerns.
In an updated travel advisory, the U.S. urged its citizens to reconsider travelling to Nigeria, citing risks such as crime, terrorism, kidnapping, and civil unrest. The country was placed under a “Level 3: Reconsider Travel” warning, with some states classified as “Level 4: Do Not Travel.”
States highlighted as high-risk include Borno, Jigawa, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Plateau, Taraba, Yobe, and parts of Adamawa, while Bauchi, Gombe, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Sokoto, and Zamfara were also flagged over security concerns.
Reacting to the development, the Nigerian government described the advisory as “unbalanced,” urging foreign partners to provide more accurate and current assessments of the nation’s security situation.