The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has defended its stringent visa policies for Nigerian applicants, citing concerns over the credibility of official documents, record-keeping practices and corruption.
The agency made the remarks while explaining its decision to place immigration benefit requests from Nigerians and nationals of 38 other countries under increased scrutiny following restrictions linked to terrorism and public safety concerns.
Speaking before the US District Court for the District of Rhode Island, USCIS Deputy Director Angelica Alfonso-Royals said the agency considered it necessary to place an adjudicative hold on pending applications submitted by individuals from countries classified as high risk after presidential proclamations issued in December 2025 and January 2026.
According to Alfonso-Royals, concerns about document verification in Nigeria contributed to the agency’s position.
She alleged that official records in Nigeria often face credibility challenges due to corruption, poor documentation systems and delayed registration of key life events.
“In Nigeria, it is common for government officials to falsify records. Furthermore, Nigerian birth and death registrations rarely happen at the time of the event and often only occur when needed, which can be years later,” she stated.
She also claimed that many marriage and divorce records are either not formally documented or are maintained through weak record-keeping systems, making verification difficult.
The comments highlight the concerns cited by US immigration authorities as they continue to review applications from countries considered to pose elevated security and documentation risks.
