The United States Government has warned American investors and business executives that routine business trips to Nigeria could result in detention, particularly where their companies are involved in regulatory investigations, tax disputes or other disagreements with Nigerian authorities.
The warning was contained in the latest 2026 Nigeria Investment Climate Statement by the US Department of State, which raised concerns over the alleged use of arbitrary detention, travel restrictions and immigration enforcement to pressure foreign businesses operating in Nigeria.
“U.S. businesses are advised that standard business trips can escalate into detention if the firm is under regulatory suspicion or faces charges by Nigerian authorities,” the report stated.
The US Government alleged that Nigerian authorities had previously employed coercive exit bans and detention to compel multinational companies to resolve commercial disputes or make financial concessions.
“Nigeria has previously employed coercive exit bans and arbitrary detention as leverage in commercial or regulatory disputes, and to extract data or financial concessions from multinational firms,” it stated.
According to the report, entry and exit restrictions, commonly referred to as watch lists, are frequently used by Nigerian authorities to pressure companies into settling outstanding regulatory disagreements or alleged tax liabilities.
The State Department cited the detention of American citizen and former United States Internal Revenue Service agent, Tigran Gambaryan, who was working as an executive at cryptocurrency exchange Binance, as a prominent example of the risks confronting foreign business representatives.
