CERPAC & Residence Permit in Nigeria: Application and Renewal (2026)

CERPAC: Nigeria’s residence permit for expatriates

If you are a foreign national living and working in Nigeria, the document that makes it lawful is the CERPAC — the Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card. It is the residence permit (often called the “green card”) that follows the STR visa once you arrive. This guide explains who needs it, how application and renewal work after the 2025 immigration reforms, and the timing mistakes that cause the most trouble.

Honest note: RenewPapers is not the Nigeria Immigration Service. CERPAC is issued by the NIS under the Federal Ministry of Interior. What we do is coordinate the documents with your employer or sponsor, prepare the application correctly, and keep you lawful through each step and renewal.

Order and timing are everything. You do not “switch” a visit visa to work status on the ground. Employment residence starts with an STR visa obtained before you enter, then regularisation to CERPAC after arrival within the required window. Starting late is the single costliest mistake — and overstaying now carries daily penalties (in force since 1 September 2025).

The route, step by step

Employer approval / quota — your Nigerian employer secures the relevant expatriate approval (see expatriate quota & work permits) and issues a letter accepting immigration responsibility.
STR visa — you apply at a Nigerian mission in your home country with the employer’s documents, your passport, qualifications and photos, before travelling.
Regularisation to CERPAC — after arrival, within the set time, you convert to the CERPAC residence permit and aliens card.
Renewal — CERPAC is renewed periodically while you remain employed and resident.

Which situation is yours?

CERPAC route checker

What applies to you?

What the 2025 reforms changed. The Federal Ministry of Interior overhauled expatriate administration and visa policy in 2025 — a revamped e-Visa, a tightened approach to expatriate monitoring, and a review of the CERPAC issuance process, alongside the new overstay penalty regime. The direction is more digital and more strictly enforced, which rewards getting the paperwork exactly right and punishes improvising. Confirm current requirements before you file — or let us confirm them for you.

Documents are often legalised

Degrees, marriage and birth certificates attached to STR/CERPAC applications frequently need legalisation — remember Nigeria is not an Apostille country, so it’s authentication through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the relevant embassy, not an apostille. We handle that so the application isn’t rejected.

Sorting residence in Nigeria?

Tell us your situation and your employer or sponsor. We’ll confirm the STR/CERPAC route, coordinate the documents in the right order, and keep you lawful from entry to permit — and through every renewal.

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