Last updated: November 2026 · Reading time: about 8 minutes
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| Payments are released in batches, not to every eligible household at once. If nothing has arrived, you are not in the current batch — which is not the same as being rejected. |
What this guide covers
Why the SMS arrives in batches
The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has been explicit that payments are made in phases, which means beneficiaries will not receive notifications at the same time [reference:5]. A separate report on the programme put it more bluntly: not receiving a notification in the first few days does not mean a household has been excluded [reference:6].
There is a practical reason for this that has nothing to do with fairness. Disbursement runs through five or six approved payment providers, each with its own onboarding, wallet activation and consent process. A batch is a set of beneficiaries whose records have cleared verification and whose provider is ready to process them. The next batch is a different set, released when its own checks are complete [reference:7].
That produces exactly the pattern people are reporting: one person gets an SMS from MoMo on Monday, a neighbour gets one from ALAT two weeks later, and a third has heard nothing at all — while all three are in the same register.
There is a second, smaller cause of apparent delay that early beneficiaries have described. Some received SMS alerts from MoMo, ALAT and NairaGram days before they noticed them, and were credited only after they consented [reference:9]. A message sitting unread in a crowded inbox looks identical to a message that was never sent.
What “NOT SELECTED” actually means
This is the part of the announcement that has caused the most unnecessary anxiety, and it is worth being precise about it.
When a beneficiary checks their status and sees “You are currently not selected to receive this relief support” or simply “NOT SELECTED”, the government’s clarification is that this does not mean permanent exclusion — it means they are not in the current batch, and later batches may include them [reference:10].
There is an important caveat attached to that, and it should not be softened. YEIDEP, the programme coordinating notifications, did not guarantee that everyone whose status shows “NOT SELECTED” would receive the grant in a subsequent batch [reference:11]. So the accurate position is: the status is not a final rejection, but it is also not a promise of future payment.
| What you see | What it means | What it does not mean |
|---|---|---|
| An SMS from a provider | You have been selected for this batch. Reply or follow the instructions to consent [reference:12]. | It does not mean the money is already in your wallet. Payment follows consent. |
| A pop-up in the app (OPay, Moniepoint) | You are selected. Tap it and follow the prompts [reference:13]. | If the pop-up is absent, you are not in the current batch — not that you are ineligible forever. |
| “NOT SELECTED” | You are not in this batch. Later batches may include you [reference:14]. | It is not permanent exclusion, and it is not a penalty for doing something wrong. |
| Nothing at all | Your batch has not been released yet, or the SMS is sitting unread [reference:15]. | It does not mean you have been skipped permanently. |
The deadline question
A separate anxiety has been circulating: if you do not accept quickly, do you lose the money? The government has addressed this directly.
According to the clarification reported by Legit.ng, beneficiaries are not required to act within a fixed number of days, but they are strongly encouraged to respond as soon as they receive the notification [reference:16]. The payment provider will send reminder messages to anyone who has not yet responded, so that qualifying Nigerians do not miss out simply because they did not act immediately [reference:17].
That reminder system explains part of what looks like a second wave of SMS. If you receive a message that repeats an earlier offer, it is likely a reminder rather than a duplicate payment — and it is a signal that your first notification was not actioned, not that a second one has been approved.
The approved providers and their codes
Disbursement runs through licensed digital financial service providers. The list has been reported with some variation — most sources name five, and at least one report names six, adding Xpress Payments, whose access instructions were not yet listed on the programme website at the time of that report [reference:19].
| Provider | USSD code | App channel |
|---|---|---|
| OPay | *955*20# | NERSI banner or pop-up on the app homepage [reference:20] |
| Moniepoint | *5573*27# | Moniepoint app; select the eligibility check option [reference:21] |
| ALAT by Wema | *945*23# | ALAT app |
| MoMo PSB | *671*0# | MoMo app |
| NairaGram | *726*00# | NairaGram app |
| Xpress Payments | Not yet listed | Instructions not published on the programme site at the time of reporting [reference:22] |
One point worth repeating from the earlier guide: being a customer of one of these platforms does not automatically qualify you [reference:23]. The provider is the delivery channel, not the selecting agency. Eligibility is determined from verified national identity records and the National Social Register [reference:24].
That is also why OPay has stated publicly that it does not determine eligibility, and that customers who cannot see the feature on the app are not eligible for that batch [reference:25].
What a genuine NERSI message looks like
The programme guidelines list three ways to identify a genuine message, and they are worth memorising because the delay has created exactly the uncertainty scammers exploit [reference:26].
| A genuine message will | A genuine message will never |
|---|---|
| Come from ALAT, MoMo, NairaGram, OPay, Moniepoint or Xpress Payments | Ask you to click a link to claim the money |
| Ask you to reply YES or dial the provider’s USSD code | Ask for your PIN, OTP, BVN or password |
| State that the payment is ₦50,000 with no deduction | Ask you to pay a fee, a processing charge or an agent |
| Arrive on the phone number you registered | Threaten that your payment will be cancelled within hours |
If you are unsure about any message, the official helpline is 0700-022-2222 [reference:27]. That number is repeated consistently by the ministry, by the providers and in the programme’s fraud warnings.
What to do if you have received nothing
Three steps, in this order.
- Check your status through your provider. Dial the USSD code for the platform you use, or open the app and look for the NERSI banner. For OPay that is *955*20# or the app homepage; for Moniepoint it is *5573*27# [reference:28][reference:29].
- Check the phone number, not just the inbox. Early beneficiaries received SMS alerts days before noticing them [reference:30]. Confirm that the number registered to your wallet is the number you are actually checking, and search your messages for the provider’s name rather than scrolling visually.
- Wait, and do not pay anyone. If the status is “NOT SELECTED” or there is no notification, the correct action is to wait for the next batch. No agent, no intermediary and no “facilitator” can move you between batches. Any offer to do so is a scam, and the government has confirmed that beneficiaries are not required to apply, pay any fee, or register through an agent [reference:31].
Frequently asked questions
Why have I not received the NERSI SMS yet?
Because payments are released in batches, not to every eligible household at once. The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs has said beneficiaries may not receive notifications at the same time [reference:33], and not receiving a notification in the first few days does not mean a household has been excluded [reference:34]. Some early beneficiaries also received their SMS days before they noticed it [reference:35].
Does “NOT SELECTED” mean I will never get the money?
No. The government has clarified that “NOT SELECTED” does not mean permanent exclusion — it means you are not in the current batch, and later batches may include you [reference:36]. However, YEIDEP did not guarantee that everyone marked “NOT SELECTED” would eventually be paid [reference:37], so the status is not a rejection but it is also not a promise.
Is there a deadline to accept the NERSI payment?
No fixed deadline. The government has said beneficiaries are not required to act within a fixed number of days, but are strongly encouraged to respond as soon as they receive the notification, and providers will send reminders to anyone who has not responded [reference:38].
Will I receive a reminder if I miss the first SMS?
Yes. The payment provider will send reminder messages to anyone who has not yet responded [reference:39]. If you receive what looks like a repeat message, it is likely a reminder rather than a second payment approval.
Which providers are paying the NERSI grant?
ALAT by Wema (*945*23#), MoMo PSB (*671*0#), NairaGram (*726*00#), OPay (*955*20#) and Moniepoint (*5573*27#) [reference:40][reference:41]. At least one report also names Xpress Payments, whose access instructions had not yet been published on the programme website [reference:42].
Does being an OPay or Moniepoint customer mean I will get the grant?
No. Being a customer of one of the platforms does not automatically qualify anyone for the support [reference:43]. Selection is based on verified national identity records and the National Social Register, and the provider is only the delivery channel [reference:44].
Will NERSI ever ask for my PIN or BVN?
No. The guidelines state that genuine messages will never request a PIN, OTP, password or a link click, and the government has warned beneficiaries against sharing these with anyone, including agents and officials [reference:45].
What is the official NERSI helpline?
0700-022-2222. It is quoted consistently by the ministry, by OPay and Moniepoint, and in the programme’s fraud warnings [reference:46].
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