Challenging the complex visa application process for African citizens

By Julliet Makhapila | Thu 15th May 2025 - 2:27 pm

I am concerned about the persistent and systemic challenges faced by African nationals in obtaining visas to enter the United Kingdom. Despite longstanding diplomatic and trade relations between the UK and numerous African countries, the visa application process for African citizens remains disproportionately complex, opaque, and frequently unsuccessful, particularly for those travelling for business, academic, or cultural exchange purposes.

African applicants must navigate a rigorous and often burdensome visa application system. This includes submitting extensive documentation, providing certified translations of any non-English materials, proving financial solvency for the duration of their stay, and paying significant fees to the UK Home Office. In many cases, applicants must travel to neighbouring countries simply to attend visa interviews or access Visa Application Centres—an additional logistical and financial barrier that citizens of many other countries are not required to endure.

Empirical data from the UK Home Office substantiates claims of systemic bias: African applicants are over twice as likely to be refused a UK visa compared to applicants from other regions. A 2019 report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Africa, facilitated by the Royal African Society, revealed that refusal rates for African visitors applying for short-term visas to the UK stood at 27%, compared to a global average of 11%. These disparities are particularly stark for individuals invited to the UK for professional engagements or partnerships with British institutions. As the APPG report concluded, “The problems are real, they are systemic, and they are avoidable.”

The consequences of these inequities extend beyond individual applicants. There is growing evidence that the UK’s visa policies risk undermining its soft power, trade potential, and academic diplomacy in Africa. Increasing numbers of African professionals, entrepreneurs, artists, and scholars are choosing to engage with more welcoming nations, redirecting their collaborations and investments away from the UK. This not only disadvantages British institutions but also contradicts the UK government’s stated ambitions to strengthen relations with African partners post-Brexit.

The 2019 APPG report outlines a number of pragmatic and cost-effective recommendations that, if implemented, would go a long way in addressing these disparities. These include:

1. Introducing expedited application processes for applicants required to travel to neighbouring countries to attend interviews (low cost).

2. Providing clearer guidance on application procedures and required documentation (low cost).

3. Allowing applicants to scan documents in-country when applications are processed digitally (medium cost).

4. Establishing more Visa Application Centres in underserved regions (higher cost).

5. Implementing stricter quality control of visa refusal letters to ensure all submitted evidence is appropriately considered.

6. Removing the affluence requirement when an applicant has credible, UK-based financial sponsorship.

7. Increasing the role of UK High Commissions and Embassies in the visa decision-making process.

8. Strengthening the Inspectorate and improving its accountability to the Home Affairs Select Committee (medium cost).

The Liberal Democrat Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BLAC) group has endorsed these recommendations and we urge the wider Party and government stakeholders to do the same. A fairer and more transparent visa system would not only reflect the UK’s professed values of equity and global engagement but also strengthen its standing and relationships across the African continent.

* Julliet Makhapila is a former Lib Dem London Regional Executive and London Diversity Champion. She is a Community Transformer, Change Maker, Model, Actor, Poetician, Community Advocate, Community Educator and the African Wonder Woman.

4 Comments

Steve Trevethan 16th May '25 - 7:06am

Thank you for a fine article which combines a deep concern for clarity and fairness with straightforward, considered suggestions for the practical achievement of such.

Would that such qualities were also applied generally to all governmental activities and beyond!
Tamara Dragadze 16th May '25 - 11:28am

This anti-African position at the Home Office persists since way back. I remember my embarrassment that my British government refused a visa for the uncle of the Rwandan ambassador to spend a few days with her on the way to the US. By the time the Home Ofgice apologised he had already made other arrangements. Excellent article here and the LibDem leadership should champion her request for transparency and inclusivity.
Veronica 17th May '25 - 7:53am

The UK will never see Africa as equal partners, nor does it want Africans to come to the UK unabated, unless of course you’re a care-worker that they have selected to come to fill the shortages/gap in the care-homes here.
Marilyn Mutsune Ndub 31st May '25 - 12:03am

We are trampled on, victimised, and enslaved by our kind as well as by the British. Black agencies don’t matter from whence they hail… will milk you to your bone. How can we possibly overcome these damaging stigmas?

Regarding those of us who might challenge the legality of immigrants, I can’t help but wonder: When the British colonised Africa, wasn’t it done by sea? So, let’s not pretend that the issue of small boats is so barbaric.

While I do not support illegal immigration, these individuals need to reflect on their own actions before condemning others who give them a taste of their own medicine. Africa never invited the British; they disregarded every barrier that was in place to stop them and acted on their own terms. So…