How to Write an Invitation Letter to Invite a Friend From USA to Nigeria

Want to invite a friend from the United States of America (USA) to Nigeria? Here’s how to write an invitation letter to the Nigerian Consulate or Embassy in the United States.

But before you invite someone to Nigeria, here are a few things you must know before hand.

Why the Nigeria embassy demands a letter of invitation for visa application

In case you never knew, the reason the embassy demands a formal letter of invitation from a host is to establish on record any links or relationship you may have with the visitor (visa applicant).

And as a matter of fact, you are expected to:

• state the extent of your relationship with the applicant and the purpose of visit;
• specify the duration of visit (the period of time the visitor will be staying with you in Nigeria);
• show evidence of accommodation in Nigeria (where the visitor will be staying); and
• undertake to bear full immigration responsibility for the visitor throughout the period of their stay.

So having known these, it is important to be sure of who you are inviting before issuing an invitation. Also be sure to provide for their safety and most importantly make sure they comply with all immigration requirements and procedures while in the country.

Documents you must present with the letter of invitation

As a host, there are documents you must present to the embassy before your invitation can be honored, without which the embassy won’t issue the applicant a visa.

These documents are:

i. A valid international passport. You must have a valid international passport of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Your passport must have at least six months’ validity, that is it must not expire in the next six months.

Before you invite a friend from the USA to Nigeria, you must have an international passport that is valid. This is a mandatory requirement.

ii. CAC certificate. If you’re inviting your friend for business, then you must also present the Corporate Affairs Commission certificate of your business or company. This is not required when your friend is visiting for tourism/visit.

If your documents are intact, then proceed with the actual letter writing process.

Writing a letter inviting a friend from USA to Nigeria

As you may already know, this type of letter is a formal letter. So first of all, look out for the address of the exact embassy the applicant will be submitting their visa application.

There are three possible Nigerian embassies and consulates in the United States:

Nigerian Embassy in Washington, the United States
3519 International Court, NW
Washington D.C. 20008
United States.

Consulate of Nigeria, 8060 Roswell Road,
Atlanta Georgia, GA. 30350,
United States.

Consulate General of Nigeria, 828 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10017, United States.

Start your letter with the appropriate and applicable address.

Alternatively, if your friend is applying for a Nigeria visa on arrival, then address the letter to the Nigeria Immigration as follows:

The Comptroller General,
Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS),
Headquarters, Sauka Airport Road,
Abuja,
Nigeria.

(It is important to note that United States citizens can only get a Nigeria Visa on Arrival as a business visa. So if they are applying for visa on arrival, you will be required to send them an invitation together with your passport copy and CAC certificate).

Next is the date, your address, the salutation and the subject of the letter.

Then introduce the applicant by stating their exact passport info, thus:

NAME:
PASSPORT NO:
NATIONALITY:
DATE OF BIRTH:

Thereafter, state the purpose of their visit, duration of stay and accommodation arrangements that have been made.

Importantly, indicate that you accept full immigration responsibility for the visitor. Something like this:

“I will bear responsibility for her immigration rules and regulations till she leaves the country and appreciate therefore if she is assisted adequately in her quest to secure a relevant clearance to enter the country for the stated purpose only.”

Finally, end your letter with a complimentary close and your full names (exactly as on passport), and sign off.

That’s it. Your letter is done. What’s next?

Scan your documents (the data page of your international passport) in color and attach to the letter. You can easily send the documents to your friend in the USA via email. Your friend will make hard copies of the documents and present at the embassy together with other Nigeria visa requirements.

You are also expected to send copies of the documents to the embassy or consulate via email.

All things being equal, this should help your friend get a visa to Nigeria within weeks.

What if I don’t have an international passport, can I still invite my friend from the USA to Nigeria?

Well, to qualify to invite someone to Nigeria, you must have a valid Nigerian international passport. If you are a business, you must as well have a CAC certificate.

If you don’t have any of these documents, you can order our full Nigeria invitation service and get everything done for you in just 60 minutes. It costs just $49.

I have the required documents, but can I get help writing the letter and sending the documents?

Yes. If you don’t have time to prepare the letter, you can still use our invitation service.

We will write a professional letter of invitation on your behalf and forward all documents to your friend and the embassy via email.