When a wallet goes, several documents go with it. You do not need every paper for every replacement, so find out which office asks for what before you start.
The order, and which steps are optional
- Note what was lost, and when. Ring your bank and phone network at once about cards and the handset. Those sit outside this article.
- A police report, if a passport was inside or an office asks for one.
- An affidavit of loss, where an office asks for one.
- Your SIM, then your NIN slip, then your driving licence.
- Other ID: voter's card, vehicle papers and the passport.
Treat this as practical sequencing, not a rule. The police report and the affidavit are papers some offices ask for, but not every office wants both.
NIS lists a police extract alongside the affidavit for a lost passport. Our SIM guide covers the telco side, and our licence guide covers FRSC's re-issue route. Ask each office first.
The police report
The police extract is a fee-based police service, and requests are made on POSSAP. No published amount was found, so read the fee on the invoice before you pay.
NIS lists it, with an affidavit of loss, for a lost passport application. Our post on the police extract for a lost item has more.
The affidavit of loss
Under the Oaths Act, a commissioner for oaths, a notary public, or a judge of the Federal High Court or a higher court can take your affidavit. In Lagos, general affidavits, including a loss of SIM, go only through the LagosCoMiS online platform. Our post on the Lagos LagosCoMiS rule explains it.
A vetted partner firm can file the affidavit of loss for you. Start an affidavit of loss. That request covers the affidavit only. Affidavit of loss: where and how covers the affidavit itself.
Replace what was in the wallet
Take the documents one at a time.
- SIM. Ask your telco what it needs to replace a SIM on the same number. If it asks for an affidavit of loss, our lost SIM card guide covers it.
- NIN slip. Reissue costs ₦600. NINAuth users can download the slip in the app for free. Our guide to reprinting a lost NIN slip has the steps.
- Driving licence. Use the Re-issue of Driver's Licence option on the FRSC portal. You need your existing licence number. Our guide to replacing a lost driver's licence has the rest.
- Voter's card and vehicle papers. Each has its own guide: voter's card and vehicle documents.
- Passport. If it was in the wallet, it is a separate process. See steps to replace a lost or stolen passport. NIS warns that using a passport already declared lost can attract up to 10 years' imprisonment, a ₦2,000,000 fine, or both.
Cards, bank and the phone itself
This article covers papers, not the handset or your accounts. Your bank and your phone network each have their own lost-item process, and neither is a filing Docufy handles. It helps to ring them first.
Common mistakes
- Going to a network shop before you have checked what paperwork it wants.
- Assuming every office wants a police report.
- Paying for a NIN slip reissue when the free NINAuth download would do.
- Starting a driving licence renewal for a lost card. That is a re-issue.
- Using a passport you have already declared lost, if it turns up.
The diaspora and life events hub has the other chains, including what to do about a lost passport abroad.