A lost or stolen Nigerian passport isn't reissued from a backup copy. You start a fresh application on the NIS portal, under the renewal or reissue option, and carry a few extra documents a normal renewal never asks for.
Here are the actual steps, in order, and what the law says about the passport you lost.
The order matters more than the speed. Report the loss, gather your documents, then apply, rather than applying first and sorting out paperwork afterwards. Doing it out of order is the single biggest reason people restart their application partway through.
Report the loss before you apply
Before you touch the portal, get a police extract for loss of passport. This is a police record of the loss, and NIS treats it as part of the replacement file.
Next comes a sworn statement. A sworn affidavit for loss of passport from the High Court sets out how and when the passport went missing. Our documents guide for a lost passport covers both in detail.
Apply again through the portal
Go to the NIS passport portal and choose "Apply for Renewal/Reissue", then pick the lost or replacement reason. The portal checks your NIN against your NIMC record, the same way it does for any renewal.
If you hold a foreign passport as a dual national, upload that data page too. Add a marriage certificate if your name on record has changed since your last passport.
Pay, book, and attend the one required visit
Payment and booking follow the normal route. You pay online, then book an appointment at your chosen passport office for photo and biometric capture.
A lost-passport case gets no shortcut here, and no extra visit either. Bring the documents above to your appointment, not only your payment slip.
Timelines follow NIS's usual targets for the booklet type you choose. Our processing time guide covers what to expect and what tends to slow things down.
The full document list
For a standard replacement, gather a police extract for the loss, a High Court affidavit of loss, an NPC birth certificate or court declaration of age and a local government certificate of indigeneship.
A vetted partner firm can manage this paperwork as part of your passport application, though the police extract and affidavit are yours to arrange in person.
Why the old passport still matters
Reporting a passport lost doesn't make the old booklet harmless if it turns up later. Section 10 of the Immigration Act 2015 treats continued use of a passport you've reported lost as an offence, carrying 10 years' imprisonment, a ₦2,000,000 fine, or both.
If your old passport resurfaces, hand it in rather than travel on it. Using it again undoes the honesty of your original report.
Common mistakes
- Applying for a replacement before getting the police extract, then having to restart the form.
- Assuming a lost passport costs less to replace than a normal renewal.
- Keeping an old passport "just in case" after reporting it lost.
Once your replacement is submitted, tracking works the same way as any other application. See how to track your passport application for what each status means.