Nigeria: Asylum Approval Rates and Decisions in US Immigration Courts
894 asylum merits decisions; 16.7% granted (2025-09 to 2026-08). Historical EOIR decisions do not predict an individual case. Judge-code history is not verified personal tenure.
How we estimate
EOIR grant rate means grants divided by grants plus denials for asylum merits decisions, excluding other closures. Rates require at least 2 decisions; rankings require at least 30. Proceedings history can extend to 1951; the first recorded asylum merits month in this import is Dec 1972. Each dataset states its own coverage. Do not interpret proceedings coverage as asylum decision coverage. Reconstructed pending counts may differ from agency totals. Historical judge-code attribution is not verified personal tenure.
Asylum approval rate in US courts
Nigeria has 894 recorded asylum merits decisions in 2025-09 to 2026-08.
The merits grant rate is 16.7%: grants divided by grants plus denials.
Historical EOIR decisions do not predict an individual case. Judge-code history is not verified personal tenure.
- Metric
- Asylum merits grant rate
- Value
- 16.7%
- Sample size
- 894
- Period
- 2025-09 to 2026-08
- Source
- EOIR FOIA case data
- Last updated
- Oct 4, 2026
Cite this page: Nigeria Asylum Approval Rates in US Immigration Courts. https://asylumstats.com/nationalities/nigeria-ni. Data through Aug 2026; source published Sep 1, 2026; imported Oct 4, 2026. Include your access date when citing.
Grants and denials by period
Totals and breakdowns use the canonical page period. Court and nationality trend tables include all available decision history; other trend tables use their labeled periods. All tables apply the display floor. Interactive filters can select a different period. Empty buckets and cells below the floor have no reported rate.
| Group | Grants | Denials | Merits decisions | Asylum merits grant rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
| 1977 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
| 1978 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
| 1979 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
| 1980 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
| 1981 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
| 1982 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
| 1983 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
| 1984 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0.0% |
| 1985 | 1 | 21 | 22 | 4.6% |
| 1986 | 1 | 14 | 15 | 6.7% |
| 1987 | 8 | 19 | 27 | 29.6% |
| 1988 | 1 | 33 | 34 | 2.9% |
| 1989 | 0 | 23 | 23 | 0.0% |
| 1990 | 0 | 31 | 31 | 0.0% |
| 1991 | 12 | 44 | 56 | 21.4% |
| 1992 | 11 | 70 | 81 | 13.6% |
| 1993 | 29 | 69 | 98 | 29.6% |
| 1994 | 17 | 94 | 111 | 15.3% |
| 1995 | 79 | 219 | 298 | 26.5% |
| 1996 | 122 | 279 | 401 | 30.4% |
| 1997 | 150 | 218 | 368 | 40.8% |
| 1998 | 160 | 270 | 430 | 37.2% |
| 1999 | 86 | 260 | 346 | 24.9% |
| 2000 | 84 | 188 | 272 | 30.9% |
| 2001 | 66 | 164 | 230 | 28.7% |
| 2002 | 34 | 190 | 224 | 15.2% |
| 2003 | 54 | 151 | 205 | 26.3% |
| 2004 | 45 | 142 | 187 | 24.1% |
| 2005 | 34 | 122 | 156 | 21.8% |
| 2006 | 26 | 86 | 112 | 23.2% |
| 2007 | 43 | 92 | 135 | 31.8% |
| 2008 | 37 | 94 | 131 | 28.2% |
| 2009 | 23 | 79 | 102 | 22.6% |
| 2010 | 47 | 78 | 125 | 37.6% |
| 2011 | 33 | 99 | 132 | 25.0% |
| 2012 | 46 | 125 | 171 | 26.9% |
| 2013 | 48 | 82 | 130 | 36.9% |
| 2014 | 70 | 94 | 164 | 42.7% |
| 2015 | 82 | 86 | 168 | 48.8% |
| 2016 | 67 | 77 | 144 | 46.5% |
| 2017 | 82 | 113 | 195 | 42.0% |
| 2018 | 83 | 157 | 240 | 34.6% |
| 2019 | 246 | 171 | 417 | 59.0% |
| 2020 | 161 | 101 | 262 | 61.4% |
| 2021 | 177 | 90 | 267 | 66.3% |
| 2022 | 406 | 196 | 602 | 67.4% |
| 2023 | 531 | 291 | 822 | 64.6% |
| 2024 | 386 | 304 | 690 | 55.9% |
| 2025 | 233 | 571 | 804 | 29.0% |
| 2026 | 88 | 523 | 611 | 14.4% |
| Group | Grants | Denials | Merits decisions | Asylum merits grant rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Represented | 144 | 630 | 774 | 18.6% |
| Not represented | 5 | 115 | 120 | 4.2% |
| Group | Grants | Denials | Merits decisions | Asylum merits grant rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Never detained | 141 | 581 | 722 | 19.5% |
| Detained | 8 | 125 | 133 | 6.0% |
| Released | 0 | 38 | 38 | 0.0% |
| Unknown | 0 | 1 | 1 | Too few decisions to report a rate (minimum 2). |
Courts with recorded decisions
Courts with recorded decisions
Guides
Methods and limitations
What is the asylum grant rate for Nigeria?
894 asylum merits decisions; 16.7% granted (2025-09 to 2026-08). Rates reflect the period and sample on this page. Historical EOIR decisions do not predict an individual case. Judge-code history is not verified personal tenure.
How do asylum grant rates vary by country?
Our nationality directory compares EOIR asylum merits decisions by the nationality recorded in court data. Use the same period and sample floor for comparisons. Nationality does not determine an individual outcome.
Which courts have the most recorded decisions for Nigeria?
Indianapolis, Indiana; Dallas Immigration Court; Baltimore Immigration Court. These are leading courts by merits-decision count in the page’s period, not recommendations about venue or individual outcomes.
Why is a grant rate or ranking missing?
We display a rate only with at least 2 merits decisions and rank judges or court comparisons only with at least 30. Small samples can vary widely. A missing rate is not a zero grant rate.