Post misleads on status of Nigeria and UK in US visa waiver scheme

“BREAKING NEWS: USA excludes UK, Nigeria and others from visa-free entry for 2025,” reads the caption of an X post published on February 25, 2025.

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Screenshot showing the misleading post, taken March 5, 2024

Attached are photos of the Nigerian international passport and the US visa.

The claim, shared more than 1,000 times, suggests Nigeria and the United Kingdom were excluded from the VWP for 2025.

The VWP is administered by the US Department of Homeland Security and allows travellers from 43 countries to visit the US for up to 90 days without obtaining a visa — primarily for tourism or business (archived here).

The post was shared by an account called “Nigerian Stories” which posts random news and has more than 567,000 followers.

However, the claim that Nigeria and the UK were excluded from free visa entry to the United States is misleading.

Free entry since 1988

According to information updated on February 19, 2025, on the Homeland Security website, Nigeria has never been on the list of countries enjoying free entry to the United States (archived here).

The updated list also does not exclude the United Kingdom, which has been on it since July 1, 1988.

As of February 2025, 43 countries are participating in the VWP, with Qatar and Romania being the newcomers.

While Qatar was added in November 2024, Romania’s inclusion begins on March 31, 2025 (archived here).

According to the homeland security website, the United States welcomed about 18 million travellers from the VWP countries in 2023, who in turn contributed nearly $231 million daily to local economies.

Since his return to power in January 2025, US President Donald Trump has signed a flurry of executive orders, including several governing immigration and citizenship. The VWP is not among them (archived here). 

AFP Fact Check has debunked false claims about Trump's immigration policy, especially insofar as it affects Nigerians. You can read them here, here and here.