The United States government has introduced stricter visa rules for Nigerians, demanding that applicants submit details of their social media activities from the past five years.
The US Mission warned that anyone who fails to comply risks an immediate visa denial and future ineligibility to enter the U.S.
In a quick response, the Federal Government announced that it will reciprocate the move by subjecting U.S. citizens applying for Nigerian visas to the same requirements.
The U.S. Mission in Nigeria issued the directive through its official X handle yesterday. It explained that the regulation expands an earlier policy that initially targeted international student visa applicants.
Under that rule, students had to list their social media handles and remove privacy settings to allow U.S. officials to vet their accounts.
Now, the updated rule goes even further. Applicants must provide usernames, email addresses, phone numbers, and handles across every social media platform they have used in the last five years.
Those who had multiple usernames or phone numbers must also list each one separately on the DS-160 visa application form.
The U.S. Mission emphasized that failure to submit complete social media information could result in immediate visa rejection and disqualification from future applications.
Oficials framed the new measure as part of the Trump administration’s broader immigration crackdown aimed at tightening national security.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has also begun enforcing a new “Good Moral Character” policy for naturalisation.
Immigration officers must now evaluate applicants beyond criminal records, reviewing lifestyle, community contributions, and adherence to social norms such as steady employment, tax compliance, and volunteer work.
Adding to the pressure, the U.S. State Department recently revoked 6,000 student visas.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that most cancellations were tied to overstays, crimes such as assault or burglary, and alleged links to terrorism.
Rubio, who has focused heavily on Chinese students and critics of Israel, said he personally orders visa revocations daily.
These measures have drawn legal challenges. Courts freed Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist at Columbia University, and Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish student at Tufts University, after controversial detentions.
Both have accused the administration of targeting dissenters. Still, Rubio insists non-U.S. citizens have no constitutional right to free speech in America.
Reacting to the visa crackdown, Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Kimiebi Ebienfa confirmed that Nigeria will implement equal restrictions.
He stressed that visa policy always works on reciprocity, meaning U.S. citizens will face the same rules Nigerians now encounter.
Ebienfa revealed that the government will soon convene an inter-agency meeting involving the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interior, and the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) to decide the exact measures Nigeria will adopt.
This latest dispute comes after a series of U.S. visa curbs against Nigerians. Only recently, the U.S. cut most Nigerian non-immigrant visas to single-entry permits with three-month validity, citing high overstay rates and reciprocity concerns.
The U.S. Mission defended the changes as part of a global review process designed to protect the integrity of its immigration system.
However, with both countries now locked in a tit-for-tat approach, visa applicants from each side face more hurdles than ever before.