VisaChiefNigeria migration: diaspora, destinations & visa routes
How many people leave Nigeria, where they go and on which visa categories - a cited snapshot for 2025-26, drawn from official statistics and international migration data. Prefer it visual? Explore Nigeria on the interactive migration map.
Outbound corridors · Nigeria
Nigeria - where they emigrate
The engine of Africa's 'japa' wave: a young, English-speaking, credential-heavy diaspora surging into the Anglosphere. ~1.7M+ Nigerian-born live abroad and the annual outflow is now study-led and care/health-led, moving card-in-hand into the UK, Canada and the US.
Start your application ›1.7M
Nigerian-born abroad
foreign-born stock, mid-2020
58.7k
UK study visas / yr
year ending Jun 2023, record high
22.3k
UK Health & Care visas
+264% in one year
#2 UK
source of UK work visas
2023, after India
17.5k
Canada new PRs / yr
2023; 5th-largest source
$19.5B
remittances / yr
~35% of Sub-Saharan Africa total
Where they live
Diaspora stock by country (latest census / official)
480k
294k
125k
100k
72k
21k
Where they go each year
Estimated annual long-term moves (people / yr)
~87k
~35k
~33k
~4k
~3.5k
Corridor facts
2ND-BIGGEST UK WORK SOURCENigeria was the world's 2nd-largest source of UK work visas in 2023, and 2nd for Health & Care Worker visas after India (UK Home Office).
STUDENTS + DEPENDANTS58,680 UK student visas (y/e Jun 2023) came with 67,516 dependants, the largest dependant cohort of any nationality (UK ONS/Home Office).
CANADA STUDY BOOMNigerian Canadian study permits ~6x'd 2019 to 2023 (~3k to ~16k+); Nigeria = Canada's 2nd-biggest student source (IRCC).
BARRED FROM US DVNigeria is excluded from the US Diversity Visa lottery as a 'high-admission' country sending >50k immigrants over 5 years (US State Dept).
$19.5B HOMERemittances reached ~US$19.5B in 2023, roughly 35% of all Sub-Saharan Africa remittances (World Bank/KNOMAD).
What visa categories they use
Share of the annual flow, by destination
United Kingdom
Canada
United States
Skilled / workFamily / partnerStudyHumanitarian / other
Corridor economics - volume, categories, cost, time
| Corridor | Volume | Primary / secondary categories | Govt cost | Time | Apply |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | ~87k/yr | Student visa ~58.7k; Health & Care Worker ~22.3k Skilled Worker (non-care) minority; very high dependant ratio (67.5k student dependants) | Care visa £304 (IHS-exempt); Skilled Worker £719-1,500 + IHS £1,035/yr | ~3 weeks out-of-country | Apply › |
| Canada | ~33k/yr | Express Entry PR (FSW/CEC) ~17.5k Study permit -> PGWP -> PR pathway ~16k | Express Entry ~C$1,525; study permit C$150 | PR ~6 months; study permit weeks | Apply › |
| United States | ~35k/yr | Family-sponsored immigrant visas (majority) F-1 study ~22k; employment-based; DV lottery CLOSED to Nigeria | F-1 SEVIS $350 + DS-160 $185; immigrant visa fees vary | Family categories multi-year | Apply › |
Key insightThe outbound flow is study-led and care/health-led, not classic skilled migration: a UK Health & Care visa at just £304 (IHS-exempt) and the Canada study-to-PR pathway are the two dominant channels, moving whole families at US$1.5k-5k per government fee bundle.
Sources: UN DESA 2020 · UK ONS 2021 Census / UK Home Office 2023 · US Census ACS / DHS / IIE · StatCan / IRCC 2023 · World Bank / KNOMAD 2023 · Italy Min. of Labour 2023 · Ireland CSO 2022. Figures are indicative planning estimates compiled from public aggregates; confirm current rules with the relevant authority. Editorial & data policy.
Inbound corridors · Nigeria
Nigeria - who is arriving
Nigeria's inbound migration is small and overwhelmingly regional: ~1.3M immigrants, mostly ECOWAS neighbours arriving under free-movement rights for trade and labour. Fee-light and informal versus the multi-million outbound wave.
Start your application ›1.3M
immigrants in Nigeria
0.63% of population, 2020
29%
from Benin
largest single origin
ECOWAS
free-movement bloc
no visa for member nationals
0.63%
migrant share of pop.
one of Africa's lowest
Where they come from
Foreign-born stock by origin (latest official)
Data not available.
Who arrives each year
Estimated annual long-term moves (people / yr)
Data not available.
Corridor facts
REGIONAL, NOT GLOBALOver 80% of Nigeria's immigrants come from ECOWAS neighbours (Benin, Ghana, Mali, Togo, Niger) (UN DESA 2020).
LOW MIGRANT SHAREImmigrants are just 0.63% of Nigeria's ~206M population, among the lowest ratios in Africa (UN DESA 2020).
FREE MOVEMENTECOWAS nationals enter without a visa, so most inbound migration is undocumented in formal terms and fee-light.
Corridor economics - volume, categories, cost, time
| Corridor | Volume | Primary / secondary categories | Govt cost | Time | Apply |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ECOWAS region | ~1.3M stock | Free movement of persons (ECOWAS Protocol) Cross-border trade, seasonal and informal labour | No visa for ECOWAS nationals | n/a | Check options › |
Key insightNigeria is a net exporter of people by a wide margin: it sends credential-heavy migrants worldwide but receives mostly low-fee, free-movement ECOWAS labour, so the commercial visa opportunity is almost entirely outbound.
Sources: UN DESA 2020 · ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement. Figures are indicative planning estimates compiled from public aggregates; confirm current rules with the relevant authority. Editorial & data policy.
Frequently asked
How many people from Nigeria live abroad?
1.7M - Nigerian-born abroad. Source: UN DESA 2020.
Where do most people migrate from Nigeria?
The top destinations are United Kingdom, United States, Canada.
What visas do Nigeria migrants use for the United Kingdom corridor?
Student visa ~58.7k; Health & Care Worker ~22.3k.
Key Nigeria migration corridors
Each corridor has its own key-facts page with volume, visa-category mix and the visa routes that apply.
See it on the map
Compare Nigeria against every other major source and destination country, trace the flow arcs and switch between inbound and outbound on the interactive world map.
Open the interactive migration mapFigures on this page are indicative planning estimates for 2025-26,
compiled from public aggregates (UN DESA, OECD and destination-country statistical releases); they are not
official counts. General information only, not immigration advice.