Nigeria’s Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has revealed that the United States government has revoked his visa, effectively barring him from entering the country for now.
Soyinka made the disclosure on Tuesday during a press conference at Kongi’s Harvest Gallery, Freedom Park, Lagos Island. The literary icon said he was “completely taken aback” by the decision and unaware of any wrongdoing that could justify it.
“It is necessary for me to hold this conference so that people in the United States expecting me for events do not waste their time,” Soyinka said. “I have no visa; I am banned, obviously, from the United States. If you want to see me, you know where to find me.”
According to the playwright, the U.S. Consulate in Lagos informed him of the revocation in a letter dated October 23, 2025, which he shared with journalists.
Part of the letter read:
“This letter serves as official notification by the United States Consulate General in Lagos that the nonimmigrant visa listed below has been revoked pursuant to the authority contained in U.S. Department of State regulations.”
The notification, issued by the Non-Immigrant Visa (NIV) Section, did not specify any reason for the action.
Soyinka, visibly puzzled, said he had been reflecting on his past to understand the motive behind the move.
“I don’t have any criminal record, felony, or misdemeanour to qualify for such a revocation,” he said. “I’ve been asking myself — have I ever offended the United States? Have I been convicted of anything? Have I ever broken any law?”
The 89-year-old Nobel Laureate also recalled that in September 2025, he had declined an invitation from the U.S. Consulate to appear for a visa re-interview scheduled for September 11, describing the letter as “suspicious” at the time.
“Initially, I thought it was a scam or even AI-generated spam,” he noted. “It looked like advance-fee fraud. I only realised it was genuine after some checks. Still, my past relationship with the U.S. mission has always been cordial.”
Soyinka’s visa was a B1/B2 category, a temporary non-immigrant visa for business and tourism.
The reason behind the revocation remains unclear, though it comes amid stricter immigration controls recently adopted by the United States government to limit migrant inflows.
Background:
Wole Soyinka, Africa’s first Nobel Laureate in Literature, has long maintained strong ties with the United States, where he has lectured at several universities, including Harvard and Cornell.
Despite the setback, Soyinka told journalists that the development “is not a personal issue” and that he intends to continue his global engagements “from wherever [he] is welcomed.”
