Wole Soyinka Says U.S. Revoked His Visa, Orders Passport Cancellation

 

Nobel laureate and literary icon Wole Soyinka has revealed that the United States has cancelled his visa and instructed him to bring in his passport for physical cancellation at the U.S. Consulate in Lagos.

The 91-year-old writer said he received a letter from the consulate dated October 23, explaining that “additional information” surfaced after the visa had been issued — though no specific details were provided.

“I have no visa. I’m obviously banned from the United States, so if anyone wants to see me, they know where to find me,” Soyinka said with his signature calm defiance.

This development comes years after the celebrated author famously tore up his U.S. green card in 2016, following Donald Trump’s election victory — a move he had vowed to make as a form of protest.

For decades, Soyinka has had strong academic ties with the U.S., teaching at several Ivy League universities since winning the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1986.

So far, the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria has not commented on the visa withdrawal. Interestingly, it comes just months after the Embassy changed its visa policy for Nigerians, now offering single-entry, three-month visas instead of the previous five-year, multiple-entry permits.