UK Updates List of Countries That Need Visas For Entry

The United Kingdom has updated its list of countries whose nationals require visas for entry, reaffirming that citizens of more than 100 countries and territories, including Nigeria, must obtain entry clearance before travelling to the UK for visits or stays of less than six months.

The requirement is contained in the updated Immigration Rules Appendix Visitor, released by the UK Home Office on July 1.

Under the revised guidance, citizens of the listed countries must secure entry clearance before travelling to the UK unless they qualify for exemptions provided under other sections of the immigration rules.

The Home Office also stated that stateless persons and individuals travelling with documents other than a national passport or, where permitted, a national identity card, must obtain entry clearance before entering the UK, except where such travel documents were issued by the United Kingdom.

According to the guidance, limited exceptions apply to nationals of the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan, with the details outlined in subsequent provisions of the Immigration Rules.

The countries and territories whose nationals require a UK visa include Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belarus, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, the Central African Republic, Chad, China, Colombia, Comoros, the Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, North Korea, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Pakistan, Palestine, the Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, St Lucia, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The updated rules further state that visa requirements also apply to stateless persons and travellers using documents other than a national passport or an approved national identity card, unless those documents were issued by the UK.