US Visa Interview: Lady Shares Her Experience in 1997, Says Her Family Arrived Lagos Embassy at 5am

• A Nigerian lady in the diaspora has lamented the massive profits the US makes annually from the denial of visas in foreign lands
• In Nigeria, she decried that people spend their life savings and sell off their properties, only to be rejected at the US embassy, despite submitting all the necessary documents
• She recalled what she witnessed in 1997 when her family went to the US embassy in Lagos for a visa interview

A lady, identified on Facebook as Ada Enugu, has recounted her experience in 1997 when she accompanied her family for the US visa interview in Lagos.

The diasporan shared her experience while lamenting how the US profits massively from denying visas in foreign lands.

She said Nigerians sell off their properties, use their life savings and submit the required documents for their visa applications, and yet still get denied.

Lady's 1997 US visa interview experience

Narrating her 1997 US visa interview experience, the lady said her family got to the Lagos embassy by 5 am and met a long queue, the length of which she had never seen before.

Ada, who was much younger at the time, noted that she could not make out what was going on around her, but she noticed that everyone who came out of the interviewing rooms was weeping.

She was so confused as to why people wept, and despite her elder sister explaining to her that it was because their visas were denied, she still couldn't understand this at the time. Her post read:

"America is not ready to discuss billions of dollars they make every year denying visas in foreign lands. For example, in Nigeria alone, people spend their whole life savings to apply for American visa, submit all the documents asked for and still get denied. Some even sell their properties to gather money to apply.

"I remember when my family went to Lagos for visa interview back in 1997, we got to the embassy by 5am and the line was longer than anything I've ever seen. When we got inside, it was PACKED. Though I was too young to understand what was going on, but I remember everybody that came out of the interviewing rooms were crying/WEEPING.

"I didn't understand why. I didn't even understand why we were there. I remember it was blo.wing COLD air in there & my as.s almost froze to death (I later learned in life it was AC 🤣🤦🏾‍♀️). I was so CONFUSED as to why lots of people were WEEPING. I remember my eldest sister telling us it's because they denied them visa, but I had no clue what visa meant back then."

Lady's 1997 experience generates reactions

Legit.ng has compiled some reactions to the lady's experience below:

Tiffany Ifeoma Staten said:

"Honestly, it’s the consumers’ fault. When a company is price gouging it’s up to us to stop purchasing as a collective. Once demand goes down so does price. We have to start using different tactics because these company’s don’t have a heart, they’re for profit.

"…Yes I’m referring to America as a company because that’s what it is. Gov’t officials making millions is not public service…it’s a multi-trillion dollar corporation, so we must act accordingly."

Obi Oma said:

"This!!! The way some of my family members suffered during this visa process is ridiculous. Still there are pro M@G@ Nigerians out here complaining about immigrants like ndi ocha. 🙄"

Trisha Toby said:

"...And yet Nigerians behave like there are no other countries in the world to travel to. Same way people spend some times up to $10,000 or more for tickets alone, just to travel to Nigeria for Christmas whereas you can spend $2,000 total for a fantastic trip to another country for Christmas. They keep taking advantage of us, and we never learn."

Emeka Akosionu said:

"Indeed, the denial rate is around 60% for B-2 visas which is ridiculous.

"I’m aware that it costs money for the VOs to work on processing the visa applications, but at the very least, the applicants should be entitled to a partial refund."

Osondi Owendi said:

"Did you see that China has followed suit?? They all use Africa for money."

Ayo Babatola said:

"I actually was about to make a video about this, I have the statistics for the denial for 2024 loan and the amount is staggering."

In a related story, Legit.ng reported that a TikTok user had shared a comprehensive list of 30 questions that one would be asked during visa application interviews.

US announces new requirements for visa interviews

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the US had announced four new requirements for visa interviews for Nigerians.

According to the US Mission in Nigeria, applicants are to come with a DS-160 visa application form with a confirmation/barcode number (starting with AA and followed by 00 – two zeroes), which matches the one they used to make their appointment online.

Prospective travellers were also warned that their confirmation/barcode number must match with their DS-160 form, the one they used in booking their appointment, because they will not be allowed to enter the Consular Section, nor will they have their visa interview.

Source: Legit.ng