Online Integrated Solution has rejected claims that it has been fully removed from handling Nigerian visa applications in the United States, describing the ongoing disruption as a temporary pause rather than a termination of its contract.
The clarification came a day after the Nigeria Immigration Service announced that OIS Services had been disengaged from collecting and submitting visa applications on behalf of Nigerian diplomatic missions in the country.
According to OIS, the interruption stems from a US government administrative requirement that governs how private companies are recognised as service providers supporting visa processing and consular functions for foreign missions.
The company said visa application submission and biometric services through its centres have been temporarily paused while that process is completed, and stressed that it remains committed to supporting the Nigerian government while working with relevant authorities to restore full service.
The two accounts stand in direct conflict. NIS, in a notice issued through its Public Relations Officer, described the disengagement as immediate and directed all applicants to submit their visa requests directly at the Embassy of Nigeria in Washington DC or the Consulates in New York and Atlanta.
OIS previously operated Nigeria’s Visa Application and Submission Centres across several US cities including Houston, Los Angeles and New Jersey, handling biometric enrolment and document collection on behalf of applicants.
Neither NIS nor the Nigerian missions in the US have publicly responded to OIS’s clarification, and no joint statement has been issued to resolve the contradiction.
For Nigerians caught in the middle of the dispute, the uncertainty carries real consequences. Applicants who are mid process through OIS and have already submitted documents or paid fees are being advised to contact the Nigerian Embassy or Consulate directly to confirm their application status and determine what needs to be resubmitted.
NIS says the Embassy and Consulates have put measures in place for seamless processing, though the specifics have not been made public.
Until the confusion is formally resolved, the safer path for anyone applying for a Nigerian visa in the US is to follow the NIS directive rather than rely on OIS centres, which may not be authorised to process applications regardless of the company’s own statement.
With over 400,000 Nigerians in the US potentially affected, the standoff between the two parties leaves a large population of applicants without a clear, unified source of guidance on how to proceed.
