How to Apply For German Visa in Nigeria. Germany is a nice place to visit. Yes, with beautiful people, breathtaking scenery, and rich culture and delicacies, I bet all this will make your stay worthwhile.
But the truth is that many people lose the chance to travel out because they don’t have adequate information on how to apply for German visa and actually get it.
Remember that without a German visa you won’t be allowed to enter Germany. A visa is a passport which indicates that the holder is allowed to enter, leave and/or stay for a specific period of time in a country.
Therefore, as you wish to go to Germany for business, vacation, education, medicals or any other reason, I advise you read this tutorial carefully so that your German visa request doesn’t get turned down.
Well, this is a step-by-step tutorial on how to apply for German visa in Nigeria and actually get it. Remember that with these carefully researched guidelines, you don’t really need an agent whom you may find out to be a fraud at the end of the day and dupe you of your hard-earned money. That said, let’s look at the steps involved.
GUIDELINES
If you wish to apply for German visa in Nigeria, you should know that there are 2 types of German visas you could get – short term and long term. Short term visas expire in 90 days and it includes visiting a friend or family and attending a business meeting.
Depending on your purpose of visit, there certain conditions and requirements attached to visitors. Also, in the case of long term visas, applicants stay much longer and they are expected to apply for Schengen visa (this is already discussed).
These are the steps you must have to follow before you get a German visa in Nigeria:
You must understand why you wish to apply for it and then get an international passport at Nigeria Immigration Service close to you if you don’t have one
- Go online and complete the application form online at www.vfs-germany.co.in and affix your passport photograph. You can also download the application form, and fill out the necessary fields with genuine information
- After this you should visit the German application center during official working hours in Nigeria to receive a token number
- At the VFS center, you will submit your application forms and pay all the necessary fees. German visa is about 70 Euros (not fixed) and you’ll pay for the services of the centre too. Remember that the number given to you enables you to track the status of your visa online
You will also have a brief interview with the officials at the center and you will explain to them in details why you wish to visit Germany. You should be able to convince them that you will come back to Nigeria after your visit to Germany with strong reason that you have a serious thing (like work or schooling) you are doing in Nigeria.
Also, ensure that your Nigerian passport has enough leaves where they can stamp
Find out from the officials at the center how your visa will be delivered to you when it is ready
After this last step, you may now go home and await their call. To process your visa shouldn’t exceed 2 weeks if there is no issue with it. And the guidelines narrated above are for a vacation or business visa. But if you wish to apply for a German visa and you will stay for long, then other things will be considered:
Applicants should book an appointment with German embassy through their helpline
This kind of visa applies when you wish to stay in Germany beyond 90 days like schooling, work permit, Au pair, medical treatment, etc.
When their applications have been approved, applicants will submit their international passport with approval letter at the VFS Center in Abuja or Lagos.
The steps above are the most important things you really need to know on how to apply for German visa in Nigeria.
All appointments for residence permits (student visas, family reunion, and work permit) must be made directly at the embassy and submitted to the embassy too.
The German Consulate General is in Lagos while the Embassy is in Abuja. Well, you may be wondering what the difference between a consulate and embassy, right?
Okay! Let me explain it this way, a German Ambassador is the highest ranking German official in Nigeria, so the ambassador lives in the embassy in Abuja while a consulate is another office approved by the same country in another city (Lagos) in a foreign country as a way to make the services of the embassy easily accessible from people of that distant city (Lagos).
Therefore, an embassy and consulate offer the same kind of services but the ambassador resides in the embassy, and there are some services that you may need and the consulate will have to refer you (or your application) to the embassy depending on the country.
Lagos Consulate.
Lagos: 15 Walter Carrington Crescent, Victoria Island, P.O. Box 72800 Lagos.
Tel: +234 1 280 99 66
Email: info@lago.dipole.de
Abuja Embassy
Abuja Embassy: 9, Lake Maracaibo Close, Maitama, Abuja
Tel: +234 9 220 8010
Email: info@abuja.dipole.de
Conclusion
Having adequate information about how to apply for German visa in Nigeria is important so that you can easily go to the embassy and help yourself by expediting your German visa application.
You don’t really need any agent to do it this for you as this piece has given you all the necessary information you need to apply for German visa in Nigeria and get it.
Schengen visa is a special visa that enables you to enter many European countries and I will discuss that fully in another article on this platform.
Although Germans don’t speak English, but they are generally nice people who treat visitors well and are also willing to teach you their language.
Cities like Berlin, Frankfurt, Hamburg, and Essen have great sites to behold. Like we observed earlier, ensure you have at least 2 blank pages on your passport to allow for stamping at departure and arrival points. Go and start off the process now.
Calvary greetings… For long have been reading this thread and my plans to study in Germany as been going smooth. Three weeks back, I received an email from the embassy to come with my passport, three month health insurance and travel date which I did the second day. And I received another email that they are in receipt of the document I sent in. Is now going to about three weeks since I file my requested docs in to the embassy, my question is, am I on safer side in getting my visa approved?….. Because I know of a girl that submitted her travel health insurance three working days after my own and she as collected her visa…. Though my resumption is September. Would be glad to hear from you
Hello,
Please, do you have an idea the requirements for a business visa?
Pls how can one change his residence status to permanent in germany? since the person doesn’t want to come to nigeria. Thanks
Hello Uzoma, you may need to contact German Embassy over there to get the details. Thanks
Am travelling to Germany for visit with 3month visa but i don’t intend coming back to Nigeria wat will i do to remain there thanks
@Ceejay, to continue your stay in Germany, you should quickly change your residency status to permanent residence once you arrive at Germany.