The embassy also stated that the number of Nigerians seeking visas outweighed what it had the capacity to deal with on a daily basis.
The US consular chief in Nigeria, Stephen Frahm, gave the explanation at a media briefing in Abuja, on Wednesday.
He said there was no deliberate policy to turn down applicants who had a genuine reason to go the United States.
Frahn explained that a diplomatic Note Verbale obtained from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would not confer on the holder an immediate approval for a visa to be issued.
According to him, a person or group of persons seeking to go to the US to transact an official business on behalf of government would be required to obtain a certain kind of visa, which like every other, must comply with the US immigration laws.
He said, “Just submitting a Note Verbale does not change those requirements.”
Frahn said that in Abuja alone, the Embassy had in view 40,000 applications for this year.
He also said 6,700 student visas (representing 67 per cent) were approved for Nigerian students last year, making it the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa.
In response to questions on whether there was a deliberate “refusal” policy targeted at genuine Nigerians wishing to travel to the US, he said, “In Nigeria, there is a greater number of applications than we have the ability to process. Abuja can only deal with 200 applications and Lagos, between 350-400, that’s about 600 per day. Nigerians should plan ahead of time, say six months.”
He also said the possession of a valid US visa does not permission to stay in the US.
“The procedures (involved) are based on the activities you are engaged in, in the US. Even at that, a visa is not a permission to be in the US, but a permission to go to the US. So, just to have a visa does not mean that part is guaranteed.
“So, the inspector or immigration officer at the point of entry has to determine. The check is whether the activity you are engaged in is consistent with the US law,” he said.
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