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Visa policy of Sri Lanka

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Related topics

Visitors to Sri Lanka must obtain a visa, either on arrival to Sri Lanka or in advance, unless they are a citizen of one of the visa-exempt countries. Most visitors entering for tourism purposes are required to obtain a visa on arrival, unless they are exempt from obtaining one.[1] However, citizens of some countries must obtain a visa in advance before being allowed to enter Sri Lanka. All visitors must hold a passport valid for 6 months.[2]

Visa policy map

Visa policy of Sri Lanka
  Sri Lanka
  Visa not required (90 days)
  Visa not required (60 days, 90 days within any 1 year)
  Visa not required (30 days)
  Free ETA or VoA (30 days)
  Electronic Travel Authorization or visa on arrival (30 days)
  Visa required in advance

Visa exemption

Ordinary passports

Citizens of the following countries do not need a visa to enter Sri Lanka, for stays up to the duration listed below:[3]

Alternatively, nationals of visa-exempt countries who instead choose to apply for a "Standard tourist visa" online are exempt from paying visa fees.[5]

Planned pilot visa-free program

On August 21, 2024, a cabinet decision was made to allow visa-free travel to 35 countries, including the USA, UK, Canada, Russia, Thailand, and Indonesia, from October 1, 2024. This pilot program to last for 6 months.[6][7] On 1 October 2024 it was announced that the plan did not come into effect and that it needs to go through parliamentary approval process which needs to await for the new parliament to convene.[8]

Non-ordinary passports

Holders of diplomatic, official, service or special passports of the following countries do not need a visa to enter Sri Lanka, for stays up to the duration listed below:[3][9][10]

D – Diplomatic passports
O – Official passports
S – Service passports
Sp – Special passports
PA – Passports endorsed for "public affairs".
1 – 90 days
2 – 30 days
3 – 60 days, 90 days within any 1 year-period.
4 – 90 days within any 180-day period.
5 – 30 days within any 60-day period.

Visa-waiver agreement for holders of Diplomatic, Official and Service Passports was signed with Benin in January 2024, however they have it is yet to come into force.[11]

Visa on arrival

Citizens of all other countries except the visa-exempt countries and countries whose citizens require a visa in advance may obtain a visa on arrival which is good for double entry for tourist or good for multiple entries for business, valid for a maximum stay of 30 days. Visas obtained on arrival are generally discouraged as such visas are not automatically approved for entry into Sri Lanka.[12]

Gratis visa on arrival

Due to the discontinuation of the e-Visa system, citizens of the following 7 countries may obtain a gratis visa (single entry) upon arrival in Sri Lanka for tourism purposes only, valid for a maximum stay of 30 days.[13]

Electronic Visa

Citizens of all other countries except the countries whose citizens either require a visa obtained on arrival or in advance may also obtain an e-Visa online.[1] The system was suspended in mid-2024 but restarted in September 2024.[14]

Prospective visitors can apply for the following types of tourism/business e-Visas (unless otherwise noted):

Validity Number of entry Duration of stay* Visa fee Note
30 days Single up to 30 days Gratis Only tourists who are citizens of China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Russia or Thailand may obtain this type of visa. For more details see below.
6 months Double up to 60 days 35 or 75 USD SAARC member states: 35 USD
Non-SAARC member states: 75 USD
1 year Multiple up to 90 days 200 USD People who engage diplomatic or consular activities may get visa fee waived.
2 years Multiple up to 180 days 300 USD
5 years Multiple up to 180 days 500 USD
10 years Multiple up to 180 days 1000 USD

* - Duration of stay demonstrates how many days visitor may stay in each entry.

Moreover, a US$18.50 service fee[15] as well as a US$5 "convenience fee" is charged by VFS Global for each visa application, regardless of the type of e-Visa.[16]

e-Visa restrictions

Citizens of Taiwan must select "China (Special Administrative Region of China)" as their nationality when applying for an e-Visa.

Visa required in advance

Citizens of the following countries are ineligible to apply for both an e-Visa and a visa on arrival independently,[2] and thus must obtain a visa in advance from one of the Sri Lankan diplomatic missions around the world:[17]

When obtaining a visa at a Sri Lankan diplomatic mission, they must present the following documents:[17]

  • Police clearance report
  • If the applicant is coming from another country after staying for more than 6 months, are required to provide Police clearance from that country and copy of the Visa
  • Certificate from a Sri Lankan guarantor & a photocopy of the guarantors NIC
  • Affidavit from a Sri Lankan JP (justice of peace) or a Lawyer
  • Accommodation information (place of stay)

Entry restrictions

Mandatory yellow fever vaccination

Citizens of the following countries must present a yellow fever vaccination certificate upon arrival in order to enter Sri Lanka:[17]

History

In 2012, Sri Lanka launched an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) system, created and operated by Mobitel, a state-owned enterprise.[18]

On 17 April 2024, Sri Lanka replaced its previous Electronic Travel Authorisation system with a new e-Visa system,[5] operated by VFS Global.[15][18]

On 2 August 2024, the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka issued an interim order, which suspended the e-Visa system operated by VFS Global and ordered the restoration of the previous ETA system operated by Mobitel.[19]

On 4 August 2024, Ada Derana reported that the Ministry of Public Security would make a final decision the next day, and noted that the suspension of the e-Visa system meant that tourists needed to obtain their visas on arrival.[20]

On 5 August 2024, the Department of Immigration and Emigration notified the Sri Lankan diplomatic missions around the world of the discontinuation of the e-Visa system.[13] According to Minister of Public Security Tiran Alles, the old ETA system has yet to be reinstated due to changes made to the Department of Immigration and Emigration's computer system.[21]

On 2 September 2024, Sri Lanka decided to implement visa-free access for citizens of 38 countries, including India, China, Thailand, the UK, the USA, and Indonesia. Although it was initially planned to be implemented on 1 October 2024, the decision was advanced due to the inconvenience caused to tourists at the visa-on-arrival counters, where overcrowding was a significant issue.[22]

Visitor statistics

This section is transcluded from Tourism in Sri Lanka. ( | history)

Most visitors arriving in Sri Lanka on a short-term basis were from the following countries:[23][24]

Foreign visitors to Sri Lanka
Country 9/2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
 India 286,556 302,844 123,004 56,268 89,357 355,002 424,887
 United Kingdom 136,464 130,088 85,187 16,646 55,455 198,776 254,176
 Russia 127,232 197,498 91,272 16,984 49,397 86,549 64,497
 Germany 99,571 102,539 55,542 12,442 34,507 134,899 156,888
 China[25] 97,267 68,789 4,715 2,417 26,147 167,863 265,965
 France 71,090 56,251 35,482 6,549 24,838 87,623 106,449
 Australia 62,004 67,436 30,924 4,421 20,283 92,674 110,928
 United States 43,678 46,344 22,230 6,124 16,842 68,832 75,308
 Netherlands 39,977 29,056 11,987 2,422 8,656 38,993 57,160
 Maldives 34,457 37,298 18,880 6,272 9,407 60,278 76,108
 Canada 33,007 43,944 26,845 5,079 12,346 48,729 52,681
 Poland 30,636 17,946 15,195 2,110 11,908 20,896 20,378
 Italy 29,346 22,242 7,449 1,309 8,603 36,147 38,379
 Spain 28,014 23,905 12,895 2,015 3,385 24,489 29,208
  Switzerland 22,277 23,556 13,260 2,974 6,389 29,981 33,965
 Japan 22,260 19,583 3,087 392 6,644 30,079 49,450
 Israel 20,515 19,517 9,326 1,724 3,556 14,770 13,833
 Czech Republic 14,894 12,056 7,350 1,864 7,599 19,204 17,600
 Malaysia 14,053 10,940 2,779 323 3,494 16,861 22,808
 Belgium 13,645 10,667 6,164 1,283 3,371 14,948 17,519
 Austria 12,080 10,594 5,541 1,502 4,300 14,713 19,320
 Denmark 11,464 10,346 7,278 1,302 4,905 16,869 19,223
 Pakistan 9,774 10,744 6,260 7,520 3,065 14,655 19,116
 Kazakhstan 8,949 5,130 8,068 5,754 2,333 2,399 2,721
 Norway 8,696 8,747 5,983 1,141 3,019 13,446 17,217
 Iran 8,669 10,322 4,301 397 648 3,249 5,720
 Singapore 8,666 9,551 3,770 557 2,545 13,871 19,861
 New Zealand 8,025 7,913 2,866 325 2,324 12,463 13,825
 Sweden 7,889 8,643 5,097 1,601 7,061 22,464 28,267
 Belarus 7,592 10,969 3,621 646 2,638 4,796 4,621
 South Korea 7,470 7,298 1,843 389 2,499 12,195 15,748
 Taiwan 6,955 4,999 363 42 1,985 7,127 8,187
 Ireland 6,248 5,136 3,056 559 2,294 8,254 10,830
 Thailand 5,395 4,922 1,725 247 1,880 9,861 9,178
 Ukraine 5,039 5,082 14,917 7,037 17,169 35,051 36,515
 Turkey 4,841 3,739 1,514 309 2,121 4,972 4,262
 Slovakia 4,822 4,464 2,432 664 1,513 4,944 5,289
 Lithuania 4,755 2,722 2,115 383 1,054 2,793 3,386
 Saudi Arabia 4,639 6,797 5,952 1,596 4,755 15,707 34,703
 Hungary 4,523 3,786 2,324 445 1,588 4,091 4,514
 Portugal 4,364 3,943 1,906 372 1,602 5,193 5,933
 Romania 4,279 4,092 3,313 820 1,724 5,463 5,931
 Philippines 3,977 4,164 1,961 529 4,249 14,590 19,303
 South Africa 3,204 3,444 1,502 272 1,364 7,132 7,416
   Nepal 3,076 4,750 1,065 325 1,384 5,414 5,302
 Estonia 2,859 1,808 978 376 1,185 2,516 2,744
 Egypt 2,840 3,091 2,340 400 956 3,708 3,854
 Finland 2,753 2,287 1,500 341 2,298 7,028 8,888
 Lebanon 2,575 3,347 1,606 547 483 4,304 5,521
 Slovenia 2,370 1,927 602 91 800 2,926 3,902
Total 1,484,808 1,487,303 719,978 194,495 507,704 1,913,702 2,333,796

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "SL eVisa".
  2. ^ a b "Visa and passport". Timatic. International Air Transport Association through Emirates. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  3. ^ a b "Gratis Visa".
  4. ^ "Sri Lanka - Travel Page". www.mfa.gov.sg. Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Singapore). 4 April 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Sri Lanka implements new online visa system from today". Travel Trade Journal. 17 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Sri Lanka approves visa-free facility for citizens of 35 countries". Ada derana. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  7. ^ Sri Lanka to allow visa free access to 35 countries: Harin
  8. ^ Sri Lanka: no free visas, ETA still necessary and chargeable
  9. ^ "Visa fee".
  10. ^ "Diplomatic & Official Visits".
  11. ^ MoU on Visa Exemption for Holders of Diplomatic, Official and Service Passports between Sri Lanka and Benin signed in Kampala
  12. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions".
  13. ^ a b Samath, Feizal (6 August 2024). "Sri Lanka reverts to old visa scheme". TTG Asia. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  14. ^ [1]
  15. ^ a b "Sri Lanka opposition leader questions visa fee hike". EconomyNext. 19 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  16. ^ Srinivasan, Meera (6 May 2024). "Tourism-reliant Sri Lanka faces backlash over new visa system". The Hindu. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  17. ^ a b c "Information".
  18. ^ a b Pethiyagoda, Rohan David (4 August 2024). "The VFS Visa Fraud in Sri Lanka – Sri Lanka Guardian". slguardian.org. Sri Lanka Guardian. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  19. ^ Padmanabhan, Keshav (3 August 2024). "Sri Lankan Supreme Court suspends controversial e-visa scheme run by consortium including Indian firm". ThePrint. ThePrint.
  20. ^ "Sri Lankan e-visa issuance suspended; final decision tomorrow". www.adaderana.lk. Ada Derana. 4 August 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  21. ^ "Sri Lanka online tourist e-visa resumption date uncertain: Minister". EconomyNext. 9 August 2024. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  22. ^ "Sri Lanka to implement "One Chop" visa-free system for 38 countries". NewsWire. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  23. ^ "TOURIST ARRIVALS BY COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE 2016" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 July 2019. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
  24. ^ "Tourist Arrivals by Region – December 2016 & December October 2018" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 November 2018. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  25. ^ Including Hong Kong and Macau.
Quelle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Sri_Lanka