The Nigerian Embassy in Qatar has reduced the waiting time for passport renewals and issuance, with newly produced travel documents now being returned to applicants in about two weeks.

The improvement followed a 10-day passport intervention exercise held in Doha from August 11 to 21, 2026, during which embassy officials processed applications from 751 Nigerian nationals.

The applications comprised 441 requests for five-year passports and 310 applications for 10-year passports.

Distribution of the completed passports commenced on September 18, less than a month after the biometric capture exercise ended, enabling applicants to receive their travel documents significantly earlier than typical diplomatic processing cycles.

Nigeria’s Ambassador to Qatar, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, described the development as a major milestone in the mission’s efforts to improve consular services.

Yakubu said the shorter turnaround time demonstrated the embassy’s commitment to responding to the needs of Nigerians living in Qatar.

“The fact that passports are now being completed and returned within about two weeks of capture demonstrates our commitment to improving service delivery and responding to the needs of our community,” he said.

The ambassador noted that valid passports were critical to Nigerians living abroad, particularly for international travel, employment and maintaining their residency status.

The faster processing initiative comes amid growing demand for consular services from the Nigerian community in Qatar.

The embassy said the intervention was part of efforts to make passport services more efficient and reduce the waiting period faced by Nigerians seeking to renew or obtain travel documents.