In April 2023, a Lagos based IT specialist (name withheld), was processing his travel to the UK via student visa at an exchange rate of about N500 to a dollar.
On June 14, 2023, while still on the travel project, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced a unification of the exchange rates, effectively allowing banks to fix their rates.
The announcement by the Central Bank in June, exacerbated the problem of the Naira, causing it to immediately spike upward.
After the announcement, banks started selling a dollar at N650, more than 50 percent addition.
A month later, the same dollar sold for N900 in the official windows (banks), and about N1,000 at the street market. This has caused all the elements in foreign travels, ranging from air fare, visa processing fee, Proof of Funds, Basic Travel Allowance, IELTS exams in the case of student visa and school fees to double.
Foreign air travels are priced in the United States dollar. A weak Naira means higher travel cost.
PoliticsNow did a survey on the cost of abroad travel by interviewing agents of travel companies. The research zeroes down to how much it will cost for a person in Nigeria to travel abroad on the new FX regime.
Air Ticket
Before the CBN announced the unification of the market, a return ticket to the UK costs between N600, 000 and N650, 000 in economy class on Qatar Airways. Now it is over one million naira. On British Airways, it is more than N4 million.
Visa processing fee
For the UK, the visa processing fee will cost a traveller to that country $500. Going by the exchange rate as at the time of writing, a dollar exchanges for approximately N1000. This means travellers in Nigeria will require N500,000 for visa processing.
Proof of funds
Proof of funds is the financial evidence from a prospective traveller’s bank account or his sponsor which they are expected to show during visa processing. At least £9,207 will be required as proof of funds for Nigerians wishing to travel to UK on student visa. At the time of writing, a pound at the street market is about N1,200. So, a traveller on student visa will have to show evidence of at least N11 million in their bank account.
IELTS Exam
One of the requirements for travel to the UK on a student visa is taking the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exams. The exam is an international standardized test of English language proficiency for non-native English language speakers. It will cost an applicant N107,500 to take the exams.
School fees
Most Nigerian travellers to the UK on student visas usually go for postgraduates which may last between one and two years to complete for full time, and between three and four years for part time.
The fees are usually paid in batches. But the average school fees for International students, including Nigerians in UK universities is between £16,000 to £24,000 per year. This will translate to between N19 million and N29 million per year.
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