University of Ibadan Introduces New Rules, Penalties for Collecting Certificates

For many Nigerian families, a child’s university certificate is more than a piece of paper. It’s proof of years of sacrifice, tuition payments and sleepless nights spent hoping for a better future.

Now, families of University of Ibadan graduates have new deadlines and fees to reckon with before that long-awaited document can finally be handed over.

The university has rolled out new guidelines governing how Statements of Result and certificates are collected, including financial penalties for delays and a warning that certificates left unclaimed for more than 10 years will be shredded.

The rules were outlined in a special bulletin dated September 15, 2026, signed by the university’s Registrar, Mr Ganiyu Saliu.

Under the new rules, graduates have six months from the date they are notified to collect their Statements of Result.

Miss that window, and a ₦2,500 non-collection penalty applies before the document is released.

Statements of Result remain valid for two years and serve as interim proof of graduation while families await the actual certificate.

Certificates become available for collection from the date of convocation and remain so for one year.

During that first year, families pay a ₦7,500 statutory fee to have the certificate issued and collected. But wait too long, and the costs climb.

Graduates who collect after the first year but within five years will pay a ₦25,000 penalty. Wait beyond five years but within 10, and the penalty rises to ₦50,000. Both charges come on top of, not instead of, the ₦7,500 statutory fee, the university clarified.

Beyond 10 years of no one coming forward, the certificate is no longer safe. The university has warned that any document left unclaimed for more than a decade will be liable to shredding, a permanent loss for graduates and families who may have simply lost track of time or fallen on hard circumstances.

The university has urged graduates and their families to take the new timelines seriously and comply, while reminding the public that although Statements of Result offer temporary proof of graduation, the certificate remains the institution’s only official and lasting record of a graduate’s qualification.