Schengen states have granted 62,099 visas to Nigerian applicants in 2023.
This number represents 58.6 per cent of all visa applications.
According to data from Schengen Visa Statistics, the share of issued visas to Nigerians has increased from 53.4 to 58.6 per cent, showing that Schengen states have become more ‘generous’ with visas for this nationality, Schengen.News reports.
However, at the same time, the number of rejected visas has increased from 46,404 recorded in 2022 to 62,099, making Nigeria one of the top countries of origin for most rejected visas in 2023.
Nigeria is the tenth country of origin for the largest number of rejected visas recorded in 2023. In addition, Nigeria is the country with most visas denied from the region of Western Africa.
On the other hand, nationals of Northern African countries like Algeria, Morocco, and Egypt are denied visas more often than Nigerians.
Out of ten countries of origin for most rejected visas for 2023, four are African countries (Algeria, Morocco, Egypt and Nigeria).
In terms of rejection rates, 40.8 per cent of visa applications filed, received a negative response.
Nigeria ranks 13th in the world for the highest rejection rates, falling behind other African countries like Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Ghana, Mali, Guinea, Sudan and Senegal.
In 2023, Nigerians have spent €8.4 million for Schengen visa applications, filing a total of 105,926.
This is the highest record of visa applications filed by Nigerians in the last five years.
In 2019, which describes the pre-pandemic times when no restrictions were imposed, Nigerians filed 102,000 visa applications.
In 2023, this number has been exceeded by 3.5 per cent.
Expenditure levels for Schengen visas by Nigerian applicants in this year had reached €8.1 million.
In total, from 2019 to 2023, Nigerians have spent a total of €27.9 million on visa applications to the Schengen Area.
High application rates of Nigerian nationals prove their interest to travel to the Schengen states, especially considering that the amount spent on visa applications is almost not affordable for Nigerian nationals.
According to Time Camp, the national average wage in Nigeria reaches a maximum of €329. On the other hand, a Schengen visa application alone, excluding the service fees, costs €80. This means that 22 per cent of the wage of a Nigerian applicant went for a Schengen visa.
These expenses would be even higher now, as the price of Schengen visa applications has increased from €80 to €90 as of June 11, 2024.
On the other hand, the monthly minimum wage in Nigeria between 2018 and 2023 has remained unchanged, as data from Statista show.
Source : https://schengen.news/rejection-rates-for-nigerian-visa-applicants-remain-high-despite-schengen-states-granting-more-visas-in-2023/
