Passengers travelling into and out of Nigeria would pay more for airfares following the introduction of extra $11.5 charge per ticket from December 1, 2025 by the Nigeria Civil Authority of Nigeria (NCAA).

The new levy is different from the $20 security levy introduced in 2010 by the apex body and other charges collected by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).

This new tax, which is also known as the Advance Passenger Information System (APIS).

In a notice to airlines, the NCAA stated that the levy is aimed at creating a “single window” approach for all agencies at the airport, and the collection is expected to last for 20 years.

The NCAA stated that the system would help to track passenger movements, improve border control, and provide airlines with a cost-recovery mechanism for the system’s maintenance.

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The initiative which is in partnership with the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), would streamline passenger clearance at Nigerian airports by collecting and processing passenger data before arrival, the NCAA said.

The memo further stated that , “The APIS charge will be collected as a point of sale and will be levied on all tickets issued from December 1, 2025, for each passenger departing from or arriving in Nigeria. The lifting airline is responsible for remitting the APIS charge to the NCAA.

“Therefore, all airlines (including Nigerian carriers) operating international flights into and out of Nigeria are required to take immediate steps to update ticketing and reservation systems to reflect the new APIS charge, as invoicing for the charge will commence from 1st December 2025 for tickets issued to passengers from 01DEC2025 for travel to and from Nigeria.”

The NCAA however exempted infants, diplomats, airline crew on duty, transit/transfer passengers within 24 hours and involuntary re-routing due to technical problems or weather conditions, from the new levy. Information gathered indicated that the exempted class of passengers constitutes about 10 per cent of the total travelling public.

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha is the Aviation Correspondent at BusinessDay Media Limited, publishers of BusinessDay Newspapers. She is also the Deputy Editor, BusinessDay Weekender Magazine, the Saturday Weekend edition of BusinessDay. She holds a BSC in Mass Communication from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a Masters degree in Marketing at the University of Lagos. As the lead writer on the aviation desk, Ifeoma is responsible and in charge of the three weekly aviation and travel pages in BusinessDay and BDSunday. She also overseas and edits all pages of BusinessDay Saturday Weekender. She has written various investigative, features and news stories in aviation and business related issues and has been severally nominated for award in the category of Aviation Writer of the Year by the Nigeria Media Nite-Out awards; one of the Nigeria’s most prestigious media awards ceremonies. Ifeoma is a one-time winner of the prestigious Nigeria Media Merit Award under the 'Aviation Writer of the Year' Category. She is the 2025 Eloy Award winner under the Print Media Journalist category. She has undergone several journalism trainings by various prestigious organisations. Ifeoma is also a fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Fellowship of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism.

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