How to apply for a China visa in Nigeria, step by step in 2026

How to apply for a China visa in Nigeria now the process is online: the form, the review, fingerprints at the Lagos or Abuja centre, and collecting your passport.

Important: ChinaBridge is a private Nigerian company, not the Chinese Embassy, Visa Application Service Centre, or any government agency. We simply help you prepare and review your application. You submit it yourself and pay official fees directly to the Centre. No agent can approve or guarantee a visa.

If you are learning how to apply for China visa in Nigeria, start online.

Since 28 April 2025, ordinary visa applications in Nigeria begin through the China Visa Application Service Centre system. You complete the form, upload your supporting documents and wait for online approval before submitting your passport.

For a Nigerian travelling to Canton Fair, visit factories, meet suppliers or negotiate an order, the visa is normally an M visa for commercial and trade activities.

Here is the 2026 process in the order you actually follow it.

Step 1: make sure you are applying for the right visa #

Do not choose the visa category simply because it looks easier.

For:

• Canton Fair;
• supplier meetings;
• factory visits;
• sourcing trips;
• trade negotiations;
• and other commercial activity,

the normal category is the M visa.

China defines the M visa as the visa for people travelling for commercial and trade activities.

A tourist L visa is not a substitute for a sourcing trip.

China's current Nigeria guidance also says individual tourist-visa applications from Nigerian citizens are not generally accepted; tourism is handled through qualifying organised groups.

If the real reason for your trip is business, apply for the business visa.

Step 2: prepare your documents before opening the form #

Do this first.

It is much easier to complete the online application when every document is already on your laptop or phone.

For a normal M-visa application, prepare the documents that apply to your case, including:

• international passport;
• recent visa photograph;
• Chinese invitation documents;
• bank statement;
• flight itinerary;
• hotel booking;
• company or employment documents;
• and information about your planned stay in China.

China's May 2026 visa guidance for Nigerian citizens says a normal M-visa application may require the invitation from the Chinese party and, depending on whether you have previously travelled to China, an Invitation Letter TE or Verification Letter of Invitation.

It also currently asks for bank activity covering the previous six months for the normal M-visa route.

But Canton Fair applicants have a separate 2026 arrangement, which we explain below.

Read our full China visa documents list before starting the form.

Step 3: complete the China visa application online #

Go to the official China Visa Application Service Centre website at visaforchina.cn.

Choose the centre you intend to use: Lagos or Abuja.

Create your account and start a new visa application.

The form asks for detailed information about:

• your passport;
• home address;
• work or business;
• previous travel;
• previous Chinese visas;
• travel dates;
• hotel;
• cities you intend to visit;
• inviting company or organisation;
• and the purpose of your trip.

Enter the information exactly as it appears on your documents.

If your passport says Charles Chinedu Nwaogwugwu, do not shorten it to Charles Nwaogwugwu on one form and use another version on the invitation.

Small inconsistencies create unnecessary questions.

What should you write as the purpose of your trip? #

Write the real purpose.

If you are attending Canton Fair and meeting suppliers, say so.

If you are visiting a factory, give the factory details.

If you are attending Canton Fair and then travelling to Shenzhen or Foshan to meet manufacturers, your itinerary should reflect that.

Do not turn a genuine business trip into a vague tourist story because somebody told you that sounds easier.

Your invitation, hotel, flights and application should make sense together.

Step 4: upload clear documents and submit #

Do not upload screenshots that are difficult to read.

Your passport data page should be sharp.

Bank documents should show the full page.

Your invitation should not be cropped.

Your company documents should be readable without somebody zooming into a blurred photograph.

After submitting the online application, wait for the authorities to review it.

Do not travel to Lagos or Abuja immediately after clicking submit.

When the application passes the online review, the Visa Application Centre sends a Visa Application Certificate to the verified email connected to your application.

That is your signal to move to the passport-submission stage.

Do you still need fingerprints in 2026? #

This is where a lot of older Nigerian China-visa articles are now wrong.

China currently exempts all short-term visa applicants whose intended stay is 180 days or less from fingerprint collection until 31 December 2026.

That covers many normal business M visas.

Long-term visa categories that normally lead to residence permits—including D, J1, Q1, S1, X1 and Z—still require fingerprint collection.

So do not assume that every Nigerian applying for an M visa in 2026 must travel just to give fingerprints.

The rules can change after 31 December 2026, so this part of the guide should be checked again next year.

Step 5: submit your passport after online approval #

Once the online application is approved, follow the passport-submission instructions shown by your Visa Application Centre.

The current Lagos and Abuja Visa Application Centre systems both show two possible passport-submission routes:

• submission by post where available; or
• visiting the Visa Application Centre.

Requirements can differ by application type.

For the special 140th Canton Fair visa process, the official notice specifically tells approved applicants to take their Visa Application Certificate, original passport and Canton Fair invitation to the Visa Application Centre.

So if you are applying for Canton Fair, follow the Canton Fair notice rather than assuming the general postal option applies to you.

Where is the China Visa Application Centre in Lagos? #

The Lagos centre moved in March 2026.

The current address is:

China Visa Application Centre, Lagos
3rd Floor, Purple Mall Lekki
Freedom Way
Lekki Phase 1
Lagos

Normal application-submission hours are 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays.

Passport collection is normally 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Ignore old pages still sending applicants to The Manor on Admiral Ayinla Way.

That is the previous address.

Our China visa centre Lagos guide covers the location separately.

Where is the China Visa Application Centre in Abuja? #

The current Abuja centre is at:

Murjanatu House, 3rd Floor
Plot 473, 1 Zambazi Crescent
Maitama, FCT Abuja

Application submission is normally 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Monday to Friday.

Passport collection is normally 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The published centre telephone number is +234 807 119 1134.

For travellers from Kano and much of northern Nigeria, Abuja is usually the more practical centre.

Read our China visa in Abuja guide before travelling there.

What is different for the 140th Canton Fair? #

There is a special 2026 process for Canton Fair applicants.

If you have a valid 140th Canton Fair invitation, you can apply for an M visa under the Fair arrangement.

Importantly, the official Chinese-language notice says first-time visitors to China applying through this Canton Fair process do not need to provide an Invitation Letter TE or Verification Letter of Invitation.

The Canton Fair invitation is used for this route.

The documents currently listed are:

• 2-inch white-background photo;
• clear passport data-page scan;
• Canton Fair invitation;
• flight booking;
• hotel booking;
• Nigerian company CAC document;
• company introduction letter;
• and bank statements for the previous three months.

That is different from the general M-visa guidance, which refers to six months of bank activity.

Use the rule for the application route you are actually using.

Our Canton Fair invitation letter guide explains how to get the invitation.

Is there express processing for Canton Fair visas? #

Not for the special 140th Canton Fair process.

The Visa Application Centre's current notice specifically says expedited service is not available for Canton Fair visa applications.

After passport submission, normal processing is approximately four working days, although the actual pickup date can change.

So do not wait until a few days before your flight expecting to pay extra and rescue the application.

Our guide on how many days a China visa takes in Nigeria explains the complete timeline.

How long does the normal visa take? #

The published normal processing time is approximately four working days after the application has been accepted for processing.

That does not include all the time before submission.

Your real timeline can also include:

• collecting documents;
• getting an invitation;
• online review;
• correcting uploads;
• travelling to the centre where required;
• public holidays;
• and passport collection.

For a business trip, give yourself more time than the official four-day processing period.

Four to six weeks before travel is comfortable.

Watch the October 2026 public holidays #

This matters if you are going to Canton Fair.

The Chinese Embassy and Consulate visa halls are closed on:

25 September 2026

and

1–7 October 2026

for the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday period.

No normal passport submission or collection takes place during those closure dates.

Phase 1 of the 140th Canton Fair begins on 15 October 2026.

That leaves little room for somebody who starts the process in early October.

If your Fair trip is close, start immediately.

What if the online application is returned for correction? #

Read the message carefully.

Do not simply resubmit the same document.

Common problems include:

• blurred passport scan;
• incomplete invitation;
• name mismatch;
• wrong travel dates;
• missing pages;
• unclear bank statement;
• and inconsistent employer or company information.

Correct the specific issue and upload the replacement.

Never submit altered or fake documents.

The Canton Fair visa notice specifically warns applicants that forged application materials violate immigration laws.

Can an agent apply for the visa for you? #

An adviser can help you prepare the file and complete the online form.

They cannot approve the visa.

The decision belongs to the Chinese Embassy or Consulate.

The online application itself uses the same official system whether you complete it yourself or somebody helps you.

A useful adviser earns their fee by helping you avoid mistakes—not by claiming to have somebody “inside the embassy.”

Be careful with anyone promising:

• guaranteed approval;
• a visa without proper documentation;
• secret express processing;
• or special access to the Consulate.

ChinaBridge Global is a private Nigerian company. We are not the Chinese Embassy, Consulate or Visa Application Centre.

How much does a China visa cost in Nigeria? #

The visa fee depends on the number of entries.

China extended its reduced visa-fee policy through 31 December 2026.

Current consular visa fees for Nigerian citizens are:

• Single entry: ₦10,500
• Double entry: ₦15,750
• Multiple entry, six months: ₦21,000
• Multiple entry, one year: ₦31,500

Those are visa fees.

The Visa Application Centre can charge separate service fees, and optional services such as courier or VIP service cost extra.

See our China visa cost in Nigeria guide before paying.

Step 6: collect the passport and check the visa #

Do not walk away from the centre or open the courier envelope and immediately put the passport in a drawer.

Check the visa.

Look at:

• your name;
• passport number;
• visa category;
• number of entries;
• validity;
• and permitted duration of each stay.

If something does not look right, contact the Visa Application Centre before travelling.

Also understand the difference between visa validity and duration of stay.

Our China visa validity guide explains that separately.

The process in one minute #

If you want the short version of how to apply for China visa in Nigeria, it is this:

1. Choose the correct visa category.
2. Gather your documents.
3. Complete the application online.
4. Upload everything clearly.
5. Wait for online approval.
6. Receive the Visa Application Certificate.
7. Submit your passport using the method instructed for your application.
8. Pay the required fees.
9. Wait for processing.
10. Collect the passport and check the visa before travelling.

For a Canton Fair trip, get the Fair invitation first and follow the special 140th-session instructions.

Do not use an old visa checklist blindly.

China's visa process has changed several times, and a document requirement that was correct last year may not be the one being applied to your case now.

First published 25 Sep 2026. Last checked 26 Sep 2026 by The ChinaBridge desk. Something here out of date? Tell us in the comments and we will fix it.