A foreigner works in Nigeria on the strength of an employer. The permission is built in layers, and almost all of them belong to the company, not to you.

The layers

  1. The business permit and the expatriate quota. A company with foreign participation registers with the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission and needs at least ₦100,000,000 in share capital before it can get a business permit. The Ministry of Interior then grants it an expatriate quota: a set number of named positions a foreigner may fill.
  2. The visa. Traditionally a Subject to Regularisation (STR) visa, sponsored by the employer, on which you entered and then regularised your stay within 90 days.
  3. The residence permit, the CERPAC — the Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card.

What changed in 2025

Since 2025, quota, business permit and CERPAC applications go through the Expatriate Administration System, online, with supporting documents and fees uploaded rather than queued for. Reports say the Immigration Service now aims to issue the permit before arrival, replacing the old post-arrival regularisation. Practice has been catching up with the rule; ask your employer or its immigration lawyer which route your application is on.

The permit

  • The fee is quoted and paid in dollars: USD 2,000 for the e-CERPAC, as listed in 2026, with expatriate insurance charged separately.
  • It lasts 12 months and is renewed; the Immigration Service has also described longer permits.
  • It is tied to the quota position. Change employer and you generally need a new quota approval and a new permit.

What you will be asked for

Your passport, CV and proof of experience, degree certificates, the signed contract or appointment letter, passport photographs, and medical and police clearances. Foreign documents should be legalised before you leave home.

Getting documents accepted

ECOWAS citizens

Citizens of other ECOWAS countries enter without a visa and have the right of residence under the free movement protocol, but still need to regularise residence and work with the Immigration Service to stay and work long term.

Use the official channel

Applications are made through the Immigration Service’s e-CERPAC portal. Anyone offering a permit without your employer’s quota behind it is offering something that will not survive a check.

Visas and arriving Moving to Lagos Nigerian citizenship