Nigeria Immigration Service is a government agency endowed with the sole responsibility of monitoring the migration pattern of the country. That is, they monitor the input and output migration system into or out of the country. However, apart from just monitoring the affairs of the migration flow of the country, they also perform various other types of functions, which we will see later on this post.

The service operates under the control and supervision of the Federal Ministry of Education as a Civil Service Outfit.  The agency was extracted from the Nigeria Police Force to be Nigeria Immigration Service under the government of Alhaji Tafawa Balewa in 1963. Some of the functions of immigration service include the following

Functions Of Nigeria Immigration Service

    1. Control of the Inflow and Outflow of Nigerians and Foreigners– The service is charged with the responsibility of monitoring how people leave and enter into Nigeria. This is important as it enables the eradication of illegal migration into the country.
    2. Issuance of Travel Document– The service is also endowed with the issuance of the travel document to Nigerians inside or Outside the country. This is also among their constitutional duties. This is to ensure proper authorization of passengers on the border.
    3. Issuance of Residence Permit to Foreigners– Not only do they issue documents to Nigerians but also to Non-Nigerians in the country. This is to enable the foreigner to be able to stay peacefully in Nigeria. Recently, the service introduced The Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card (CERPAC), which must be acquired by a foreigner in order to live in Nigeria.
    4. Border Surveillance and Patrol- As part of regulating the inflow and outflow of people into the country, they perform a surveillance work as they have to do most of the checking at the border entering into Nigeria. However, the surveillance is not just limited to those entering through the border but also those staying in the country in an illegal way.
    5. Enforcement of Laws and Regulations- As a federal agency, the service must enforce the laws and regulations with which they are charged. 
    6. Perform Intelligence-Based Jobs- As part of the para-military training, immigration officials are trained to be able to apply their intelligence in solving some critical conditions. Examples include the appropriate understanding of the travel documents. 
    7. Record-Keeping– Another fundamental responsibility of the immigration service is the keeping of all records of citizens or non-citizen that enters or leaves the country. This is important most especially for research purposes. 
    8. Detain Illegal Immigrants– One of the vast functions of immigration service is to investigate and detain any individual found to be an illegal immigrant. If foreigner, he/she will be deported back to his/her country after spending some time in prison. 
    9. Investigate vehicles, aircraft, boats, etc.–  The immigration service does this in collaboration with the customs service. They locate and seize undeclared vehicles, aircraft, etc. 
    10. Collaboration with Other Law Enforcement Agency– In fulfillment of their role, there is the need for joining hands with other law enforcement agencies like police for effective implementation of the law and regulation.
    11. Determine taxes– Also, in collaboration with the customs service, the service determines the taxes to be paid on goods that are been imported into the country. In addition, they inspect the goods for the safety of the nation. 
    12. Examination of Travel Document– The service does not just only provide travel document for citizens but also perform the function of thoroughly investigating other travel document form non-citizens and even citizens. They do this in their forensic laboratory. 
    13. Biometric Record– The Immigration service is also saddled with the responsibility of taking the necessary biometric from the passenger for effective and up-to-date keeping. An example of such is fingerprint taking. 
    14. Organization of Training programs– Also, the immigration service has the responsibility of organizing training programs for their staff. This is to enable proper acquisition of skills for effective implementation of Law and Regulation. Recently, the service organizes a training program for the staff in the forensic laboratory. 
    15. Organization of Ceremonial Parades– As part of their programs, the immigration service, at the end of the training program, organizes a Passing Out parade for their student and make them immigration officers. 
    16. Employment Provision– On a yearly basis, the immigration service recruits new members so as to have them trained for the implementation of Law and Order. This is important as it provides job opportunities for the youth.  
    17. Provision of security– The immigration service, through their monitoring process on the inflow and outflow of people into Nigeria, provide security for the citizens and even the non-citizens that are living in Nigeria. 
    18. Strengthen the bond between Nigeria and other Countries– The immigration service also has the responsibility of making a strong bond between Nigeria and other countries or strengthen the already made bond between the countries. This is done through the introduction of ECOWAS and African affairs/bilateral division. 
    19. Production of e-Machines– In line with the development of e-passport, the service is charged with the responsibility of ensuring each and every state has its own e-passport for effective law implementation. 
    20. Contribution to The Growth of Nigeria’s Economy– Through the introduction of innovative ideas and the proper implementation of laws and regulations, the immigration service contributes enormously to the economy of Nigeria in a positive way.

The mission of the service includes the following:

  1. To have an IT-driven security outfit that can conveniently address the operational challenges of modern migration
  2. To give the immigration service a new sense of direction that can make it relevant at all times to the world security order and responsive to global migration trend.

NIS is currently is headed by CGIS Muhammed Babandede, who succeeded former CGIS Martin Kure Abeshi in 2016. The Immigration service comprises of the different sections where an individual can work as either an immigration officer or an immigration enforcement agent. Because their functions deal more or less with criminality, there is a need for collaboration with other law enforcement agencies.

The functions of the Nigerian immigration service are very wide as there are various sections endowed with different responsibilities. Thus, the section determines the function that the officials in the section will carry out. That’s all about the Top 20 Functions Of Nigeria Immigration Service.

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