October 28, 2025
By Tobi Akinnubi
The United States government has revoked the non-immigrant visa of Nigeria’s Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka.
Soyinka disclosed this during a media parley held on Monday at Kongi’s Harvest Gallery, Freedom Park, Lagos Island.
According to the literary icon, the U.S. Consulate General in Lagos, in a letter dated October 23, 2025, directed him to bring his passport to the Consulate’s office for physical cancellation of the visa.
The letter, issued under the authority of the U.S. Department of State, reportedly stated that “additional information became available after the visa was issued,” leading to its revocation.
Soyinka said he was unaware of any wrongdoing that could have warranted the decision.
“It is necessary for me to hold this conference so that people in the United States who are expecting me for this event or that event do not waste their time,” he said.
“I have no visa; I am banned, obviously, from the United States. And if you want to see me, you know where to find me.”
The revoked visa, a B1/B2 category, was issued to the Nobel Laureate on April 2, 2024.
The development follows an earlier controversy in September when Soyinka declined an invitation from the U.S. Consulate to attend a visa re-interview, which he described at the time as “bizarre” and “insensitive.”
As of press time, the U.S. Consulate had not issued any official statement regarding the reason for the visa revocation.
