Federal Government Directs Immediate Deactivation Of Passports For Nigerians Who Have Renounced Citizenship

Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo orders NIS to withdraw passports of former Nigerians following presidential approval of their citizenship renunciation.

By: AXL Media

Published: Apr 11, 2026, 5:34 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Politics Nigeria

A Strict Enforcement Of Citizenship Status

The Federal Government has initiated a decisive move to regulate the possession of national identity documents by ordering the immediate withdrawal of passports from former citizens. Minister of Interior Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo issued the directive on Saturday, instructing the Nigeria Immigration Service to identify and deactivate documents held by individuals who have formally relinquished their nationality. This action is intended to ensure that the privileges associated with Nigerian citizenship, particularly the possession of a sovereign passport, are restricted solely to those who maintain legal status under the state.

Presidential Approval As The Deciding Factor

Authorities clarified that the directive is not a blanket measure but specifically targets individuals whose applications for renunciation have undergone full due process. According to the Minister’s media aide, Alao Babatunde, the deactivation applies only after a renunciation has been formally completed and granted approval by the President. Once this executive endorsement is secured, the affected individuals are no longer legally recognized as Nigerian nationals, making their possession of a national passport a violation of existing document protocols.

Constitutional Mandate and Legal Procedure

The Minister grounded the new directive in the specific provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended. He referenced Section 29, subsections 1 and 2, which detail the legal procedure for an individual to declare they no longer wish to be a citizen. The law stipulates that once such a declaration is registered by the President, the individual shall immediately cease to be a citizen of Nigeria. The withdrawal of the passport is characterized as a mechanical consequence of this constitutional shift in legal status.