US revokes Wole Soyinka’s B1/B2 visa after he ignored re-interview request

The United States of America has revoked the visa of the Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, making his entry into the country impossible for now

Soyinka announced the development on Tuesday during a media parley held at Kongi’s Harvest Gallery, Freedom Park, Lagos Island, saying he was unaware of any wrongdoing that could have warranted the revocation.

“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.

“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 told journalists.

According to Soyinka, the US Consulate informed him of the revocation in a letter dated October 23, 2025.

The reason for the visa revocation remains unclear, as Soyinka himself said he was still in the dark about it.

In recent times, the US government has taken steps to curb the influx of migrants into the country.

The correspondence to Soyinka read partly, “This letter serves as official notification by the United States Consulate General in Lagos that the non-immigrant visa listed below has been revoked pursuant to the authority contained in U.S. Department of State regulations”.

The letter was issued by the NIV Section of the Consulate.

Commenting on the letter, the Prof said, “I’m still looking into my past history… I don’t have any past criminal record or even a felony or misdemeanour to qualify for the revocation.

“I’ve started looking back—have I ever misbehaved toward the United States of America? Do I have a history? Have I been convicted? Have I gone against the law anywhere?”

Recall that on September 10, 2025, that Soyinka was reported to have said he would not honour an invitation by the US Consulate in Nigeria for a visa re-interview, which was scheduled for Thursday, September 11.

He made this known to the invitation sent by the American Consulate to Nigerians holding B1/B2 visas, asking them to appear for what it called a “visa interview.”

Soyinka’s visa is classified as B1/B2—a temporary, non-immigrant visa for travel to the United States for business (B-1) or tourism (B-2).