The government of Qatar has dismissed reports suggesting that it has introduced new visa restrictions on Nigerian passport holders.
While speaking with BBC Pidgin on Wednesday, an official of the Qatari Ministry of Interior, clarified that there were currently no such restrictions in place.
The official stressed that Nigerians seeking to travel to Qatar can apply for visas under the existing procedures.
This clarification followed an earlier reports claiming that Qatar had tightened its visa rules for Nigerian travellers.
It could be recalled that there was an unconfirmed report sparked by a flyer from TravelTank, a Nigerian travel agency, which listed what it claimed were new visa requirements for Nigerians travelling to Qatar.
The reports also claimed that only women or families could apply for visas, with additional requirements of a five-star hotel booking and a return flight ticket before applying for a travel or transit visa.
The notification, it was gathered, cited frequent cases of overstays by Nigerian travellers as the reason.
However, according to the BBC, Hayya, Qatar’s digital platform for e-visa services, clarified that the visa application process remains unchanged.
“There has been no suspension or changes to the current procedures. If any updates are to be made, they will be announced on our official platforms,” it stated.
