2yrs after UAE visa ban, portal opens as Emirates’ bookings resume

Ahead of the resumption of its flights on October 1, 2024, after a two-year hiatus, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) flag carrier, Emirates, has opened ticket booking for Nigerian passengers.

This was just as the visa application portal was also opened for Nigerians visiting the UAE.

Emirates had in May, this year announced it would resume services to Nigeria from October 1, operating a daily service between Lagos and Dubai, two years after the airline suspended flights to Nigeria over inability to repatriate funds from its ticket sales in Nigeria as it was owed over $85m.

Authorities in the UAE also followed with a visa ban on Nigerians, thereby halting movement between Nigeria and the UAE.

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Daily Trust reports that the federal government reopened negotiations with the UAE authorities and Emirates with a view to resolving the issues.

Ahead of the resumption of its flights in less than one month from now, Emirates has opened booking for Nigerian passengers with the cheapest fare of $665.30 (N1,059,969.41) and $8,852 for first class.

This means that any passenger who wants to travel from Lagos to Dubai or Dubai to Lagos from October 1, 2024, can book on the airline’s website.

Sources told our correspondent yesterday that the visa application portal had also been opened, with Emirates communicating the development to its Nigerian travel partners.

“We are excited to inform you that the Dubai Visa Processing Centre (DVPC) has reopened and they are now accepting visa applications for passengers travelling to Dubai,” a message sighted by our correspondent read.

Checks by our correspondent indicated that a 60-day tourist visa costs N218,450 without any verification fee.

In addition, those stranded in the UAE who want to return home have also been granted amnesty with effect from September 1.

The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Ports Security (ICP) announced the two-month visa amnesty. The period offers a crucial opportunity for individuals staying illegally in the UAE to rectify their status without facing fines or penalties.

The amnesty is comprehensive, covering all types of visas, including tourist visas, expired residency visas, and even in situations where individuals were born without any official documentation.

The UAE government said that the inclusivity ensured that a wide range of individuals could benefit from the programme; whether they had overstayed their visa or never had proper documentation.

Many Nigerians in the UAE are expected to take advantage of the amnesty to either regularise their stay or exit the country, Daily Trust was told.

A Nigerian resident in the UAE who spoke with our correspondent yesterday said, “Those of us who are here, including those who have overstayed, can take advantage of the amnesty window to return home.

“For those of us who are here now, we can get a visa with the amnesty, and you can get it with all the charges and levies removed. Maybe by next week, those people in Nigeria who want to come to the UAE can begin to get visas, but for now, the amnesty is for those who are here in the UAE.”

It would be recalled that the federal government announced that the UAE had lifted its visa ban on Nigerians.

As soon as the announcement was made by the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, a fake website was created indicating that applicants were to pay N640,000 verification fee and a proof of $10,000 in their accounts each. Some people who rushed to pay through the website later found it to be fake and not affiliated with the UAE. The UAE denied the conditions.

Aviation analyst and Director of Research, Zenith Travels, Mr. Olumide Ohunayo said while the visa application has resumed,the UAE authority still placed restrictions on some applicants. He said the government can still intercede to expand the visa offering or reciprocate by restricting Nigerian visa to some UAE applicants.