The Nigerian Overstayer in search of greener pastures
Countless overstayers in the UK have managed to remain at large, the question is: At what cost and for how long?
By Angel Aluo
A Nigerian woman tells her story on how she became an overstayer in the Uk.
Her true identity is kept anonymous, and we simply refer to her as ‘Jennifer.’
In December 2025, 5.9 million of UK employees were found to be adult migrants. Asides these men and women, what no data can account for are the undocumented wayfarers equally in search of different living conditions. And amidst the UK’s fast growing anti-immigrant sentiment and the government’s continuous crackdown attempts, loopholes continue to exist and the lucky ones continue to remain undercover.
40-year-old ‘Jennifer’ is one of such immigrants. With a deserter husband, a 10-year-old son, and her home country under distress, the promise of a fresh start felt like manna from heaven.
Jennifer said she was encouraged by a friend living in the UK to come over. “There are ways to figure this thing out”, he’d said to her.
After arriving in the winter of 2025, word of mouth got her and her child, a cramped bedroom to rent in a house filled with strangers.
Shortly after, she was introduced to a woman simply known as “Alhaja”—a honorific title for a Muslim woman who has completed the sacred Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca– who gave Jennifer encouragement and a promise to help her fellow Nigerian any way possible. The mysterious woman casually offered a bed in her own home in exchange for personal errands but was declined.
A few weeks later, desperate and confused, Jennifer recalls being contacted by a man who claimed to be an agent from Alhaja. He’d ask her brief questions about her background and her entry into the UK, and seemingly satisfied, set up a meeting at a Nigerian restaurant in London.
Alongside two other female employees, this said restaurant is now where Jennifer works 12 hours every day, doing all things from managing inventory to cooking, cleaning and food delivery.
She said there were no contracts to be signed, no checks or references done, just an unspoken agreement to secrecy and a take-it-or-leave-it wage of £4 per hour –at least 69% less than the UK’s average minimum wage.
When asked why she has chosen to remain in unfavourable conditions, she responded:
“Back home people I know are dying of hunger, some are getting kidnapped or killed. The country is not safe; there is no work and I have no support. Even though it’s hard here, at least I make some money every day, we can eat and my child can go to school for free.”
