President Bola Tinubu has asked the Nigerian Senate to amend the country’s existing law on the transfer of convicted offenders, seeking to enable eligible Nigerians convicted abroad to serve their prison sentences at home under agreements with foreign governments.

The President transmitted the Transfer of Convicted Offenders (Enactment and Enforcement) Amendment Bill, 2026, to the Senate for consideration, with the proposed legislation aimed at expanding Nigeria’s legal framework for international prisoner transfers.

The bill was presented to the Senate through a presidential letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary . Tinubu urged lawmakers to give the proposal expeditious consideration.

According to the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, the proposed amendment would empower the President to extend the application of the existing law to countries with which Nigeria has entered into relevant agreements, including nations outside the Commonwealth.

The bill seeks to amend the Transfer of Convicted Offenders (Enactment and Enforcement) Act, 2004, to provide a legal basis for implementing agreements between Nigeria and other countries concerning the transfer of convicted persons.

Under the proposed arrangement, eligible Nigerians convicted and imprisoned in foreign countries could potentially serve their sentences in Nigeria, subject to the conditions of the relevant agreements and applicable legal procedures.

The framework would also allow Nigeria to consider requests from foreign governments seeking to transfer their citizens convicted by Nigerian courts to serve their sentences in their respective countries.

A key provision would empower the President to extend the law to countries covered by relevant agreements through an order published in the Federal Gazette. This is intended to facilitate prisoner-transfer arrangements with countries beyond the Commonwealth.

Following the presentation of the President’s request, the Senate referred the bill to its Committee on Rules and Business for further legislative consideration. The proposed amendment must pass through the required legislative process before it can become law.

Prisoner-transfer agreements provide a mechanism for eligible convicted persons to serve their sentences in another country under mutually agreed conditions. Such arrangements require cooperation between the countries involved and do not automatically guarantee that every Nigerian convicted abroad will be transferred home.

The proposed legislation therefore seeks to broaden Nigeria’s capacity to negotiate and implement international prisoner-transfer agreements, particularly with countries outside the Commonwealth.

President Bola Tinubu has asked the Senate to amend Nigeria’s prisoner-transfer law to enable eligible Nigerians convicted abroad to serve their sentences at home under agreements with foreign governments.