Keypoints:
- Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka confirms his US visa has been revoked
- The consulate cited State Department rules allowing visa cancellation
- Soyinka, a long-time Trump critic, says he is ‘content’ with the decision
NIGERIAN Nobel laureate and playwright Wole Soyinka has revealed that the United States consulate in Lagos has revoked his non-immigrant visa, in a decision he says leaves him ‘content’ rather than angry.
Letter from the consulate
Speaking at a news conference in Lagos, the 91-year-old writer read aloud from a letter he received from the US consulate, which cited the Department of State’s authority to revoke visas at any time. The letter instructed him to bring his passport to the consulate so the cancellation could be recorded in person.
According to the letter, officials acted under US immigration regulations permitting a consular officer or authorised Department official to revoke a visa ‘at any time, in his or her discretion’.
‘I want to assure the consulate that I am very content with the revocation of my visa,’ Soyinka told reporters. He added that the public announcement was intended to inform those in the United States expecting his attendance at events not to make unnecessary arrangements.
Past ties to the United States
Soyinka, best known for Death and the King’s Horseman and The Man Died, became the first African to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1986. He has held visiting academic posts at several leading US universities, including Harvard and Cornell.
He once held permanent residency status in the United States but famously destroyed his green card after Donald Trump’s first election victory in 2016, calling it a personal act of protest. Soyinka has remained a vocal critic of the US president, who is now serving a second term.
Earlier visa re-assessment
Earlier this year, the US consulate in Lagos invited Soyinka for an interview to re-assess his visa — an invitation he declined, describing it as a ‘strange formality’. He said he suspected that his outspoken criticism of Trump’s policies may have influenced the reassessment.
A letter from the consulate seen by AFP confirmed the cancellation was in line with State Department rules, which allow revocation when ‘additional information’ becomes available after issuance.
Broader visa tightening
The revocation follows a wider tightening of US visa policy in Nigeria. In mid-2025, the embassy announced that multiple-entry visas valid for up to five years would be replaced by single-entry visas lasting three months.
The Trump administration has also made visa cancellations a hallmark of its immigration approach, notably targeting academics and students outspoken on global issues such as Palestinian rights.
The US embassy in Abuja did not respond to requests for comment.
Soyinka’s response
Despite the diplomatic implications, Soyinka said the decision would not affect his work or travel plans outside the United States. ‘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,’ he said with a smile.
The author added that he had no criminal record or history of misconduct to justify the decision but accepted it as part of the changing global climate.
‘The world is big enough,’ he said, ‘and my work continues wherever there are people who still value free thought.’
