Is Nigeria safe for women travellers?
Significant restrictions
Nigeria carries significant legal restrictions for women travellers — the clearest concern is women's legal rights (major legal gaps).
What to know as a woman
the sourced facts that weigh most for you · concerns first
Significant legal gaps remain for women — the WBL index scores 66/100 (2023). Expect unequal rules in areas such as mobility, marriage or the workplace; check local specifics before you travel.
Abortion is permitted only to save the woman’s life under the Criminal Code (southern states) and Penal Code (northern states); it is otherwise punishable by up to 14 years’ imprisonment.
Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution bars discrimination by ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion or political opinion, but there is no comprehensive anti-discrimination statute and no protection for sexual orientation.
Identity & recognition
Same-sex relationships
CriminalisedSame-sex sexual activity is criminalised under the Criminal Code and the Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act 2013, carrying up to 14 years’ imprisonment (death under Sharia in 12 northern states).
Legal gender recognition
Not possibleNigeria has no legal procedure for changing one’s gender marker, and cross-dressing is criminalised in several northern states.
Anti-discrimination protection
PartialSection 42 of the 1999 Constitution bars discrimination by ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion or political opinion, but there is no comprehensive anti-discrimination statute and no protection for sexual orientation.
Disability rights
CRPD + 2018 ActNigeria ratified the UN CRPD on 24 September 2010 and enacted the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act 2018.
Women's legal rights
Major legal gapsSignificant legal gaps remain for women — the WBL index scores 66/100 (2023). Expect unequal rules in areas such as mobility, marriage or the workplace; check local specifics before you travel.
LGBTQ+ legal equality
Few or no protectionsLGBTQ+ people face a hostile legal environment — Equaldex scores 7/100 (2026); expect few or no protections, and in some places active criminalisation. Research local law and discretion carefully.
Body & health
Abortion access
To save lifeAbortion is permitted only to save the woman’s life under the Criminal Code (southern states) and Penal Code (northern states); it is otherwise punishable by up to 14 years’ imprisonment.
Cannabis & personal drug law
Illegal, severeCannabis is illegal under the NDLEA Act and the Indian Hemp Act 1966; possession draws up to 15 years and cultivation up to life imprisonment or death.
Faith & conscience
Government restriction of religion
High restrictionsPew Research Center’s Government Restrictions Index places Nigeria in the ’high’ band (2022 data, published 2024).
Blasphemy & apostasy law
Actively enforcedBlasphemy is prosecuted under state penal codes and Sharia penal codes (notably Kano), with death sentences imposed as recently as 2020.
Speech & press
Freedom of expression
Partly free · 44/100Rated Partly Free, 44/100, by Freedom House (2025).
Your obligations on arrival
Address / residence registration
Foreign nationals staying over 90 days, including students, must obtain a CERPAC residence permit, applied for within 90 days of arrival on a Subject to Regularisation (STR) visa.
Student work rights
The Nigerian student visa (R7A) authorises full-time study only; paid employment is not permitted without separate work authorisation.
Health insurance
Valid medical insurance is listed among the supporting documents for the Nigerian student visa (R7A), though the requirement is applied inconsistently in practice.
Bringing medication
Travellers may carry prescription medicines for personal use, but importing drugs unregistered or unavailable in Nigeria requires a NAFDAC personal-use import permit and a doctor’s prescription under the Drugs and Related Products (Registration) Act 1996.
Laws differ from lived experience and this is not legal advice. Each fact shows its evidence type, date and source. Full method & sources →
Emergency numbers
Travel-medical cover that works abroad with no local address, and a data eSIM so maps and messaging work the moment you land.