Visa policy of Sri Lanka

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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 an electronic visa (e-Visa) or a visa on arrival, unless they are exempt from obtaining one.[1] However, citizens of some countries must obtain a visa in advance instead of an e-Visa before being allowed to enter Sri Lanka. All visitors must hold a passport valid for 6 months.[2]

On 17 April 2024, Sri Lanka replaced its previous Electronic Travel Authorisation system with a new e-Visa system,[3] operated by VFS Global.[4] However, the new e-Visa system's increased fees were criticised by Sri Lankan opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, who claimed that Russian airline Red Wings Airlines had ceased operating flights to Sri Lanka due in part to the increased visa fees, and warned that the tourism industry could be brought to a "standstill".[4]

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)
  Gratis eVisa (30 days)
  eVisa / Visa on arrival (30 days)
  Visa on arrival (30 days)
  Visa required

Visa exemption

Ordinary passports

On the basis of reciprocity, citizens of the following countries do not need a visa to enter Sri Lanka, for stays up to the duration listed below:[5]

Alternatively, nationals of visa-exempt countries who instead choose to apply for a "Standard tourist visa" online are exempt from paying visa fees.[3]

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:[5][7][8]

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 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.[9]

Citizens of the following countries and territories are ineligible to obtain an e-Visa, but may obtain a visa on arrival in Sri Lanka.[2] When obtaining a visa on arrival, they must provide a passport photo and fill in additional paperwork, such as a "Declaration of Identity for Visa Purpose", in order to be granted the visa.

Electronic Visa (e-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]

e-Visa can be applied for tourism or business reasons and includes following types (unless otherwise noted):

Validity Number of entry Duration of stay1 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 from 24 October 2023 to 30 April 2024.
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

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

In addition, a 18.50 USD service fee is charged by VFS Global for each visa application.[4]

Gratis e-Visa

From 24 October 2023 to 30 April 2024, citizens of the following 7 countries are eligible for a gratis e-Visa (single entry) for tourism purposes only, valid for a maximum stay of 30 days.[10]

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:[10]

When obtaining a visa at a Sri Lankan diplomatic mission, they must present the following documents:[10]

  • 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:[10]

Visitor statistics

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

Most visitors arriving in Sri Lanka on a short-term basis were from the following countries:[11][12]

Foreign visitors to Sri Lanka
Country 3/2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
 India 96,279 302,844 123,004 56,268 89,357 355,002 424,887
 Russia 91,205 197,498 91,272 16,984 49,397 86,549 64,497
 United Kingdom 58,819 130,088 85,187 16,646 55,455 198,776 254,176
 Germany 48,176 102,539 55,542 12,442 34,507 134,899 156,888
 China[13] 39,212 68,789 4,715 2,417 26,147 167,863 265,965
 France 33,382 56,251 35,482 6,549 24,838 87,623 106,449
 Australia 21,762 67,436 30,924 4,421 20,283 92,674 110,928
 Poland 19,498 17,946 15,195 2,110 11,908 20,896 20,378
 United States 19,038 46,344 22,230 6,124 16,842 68,832 75,308
 Netherlands 12,249 29,056 11,987 2,422 8,656 38,993 57,160
 Canada 12,072 43,944 26,845 5,079 12,346 48,729 52,681
 Czech Republic 10,324 12,056 7,350 1,864 7,599 19,204 17,600
 Italy 9,181 22,242 7,449 1,309 8,603 36,147 38,379
  Switzerland 8,361 23,556 13,260 2,974 6,389 29,981 33,965
 Kazakhstan 8,298 5,130 8,068 5,754 2,333 2,399 2,721
 Maldives 7,716 37,298 18,880 6,272 9,407 60,278 76,108
 Japan 7,234 19,583 3,087 392 6,644 30,079 49,450
 Spain 6,746 23,905 12,895 2,015 3,385 24,489 29,208
 Austria 6,431 10,594 5,541 1,502 4,300 14,713 19,320
 Denmark 6,199 10,346 7,278 1,302 4,905 16,869 19,223
 Belarus 5,891 10,969 3,621 646 2,638 4,796 4,621
 Iran 5,196 10,322 4,301 397 648 3,249 5,720
 Sweden 5,155 8,643 5,097 1,601 7,061 22,464 28,267
 Malaysia 5,067 10,940 2,779 323 3,494 16,861 22,808
 Israel 4,973 19,517 9,326 1,724 3,556 14,770 13,833
 Belgium 4,455 10,667 6,164 1,283 3,371 14,948 17,519
 Romania 4,455 4,092 3,313 820 1,724 5,463 5,931
 Lithuania 3,835 2,722 2,115 383 1,054 2,793 3,386
 Norway 3,588 8,747 5,983 1,141 3,019 13,446 17,217
 Ukraine 3,585 5,082 14,917 7,037 17,169 35,051 36,515
 Hungary 3,440 3,786 2,324 445 1,588 4,091 4,514
 Taiwan 3,431 4,999 363 42 1,985 7,127 8,187
 South Korea 3,368 7,298 1,843 389 2,499 12,195 15,748
 Pakistan 3,196 10,744 6,260 7,520 3,065 14,655 19,116
 Slovakia 3,114 4,464 2,432 664 1,513 4,944 5,289
 Singapore 2,832 9,551 3,770 557 2,545 13,871 19,861
 Ireland 2,679 5,136 3,056 559 2,294 8,254 10,830
 Estonia 2,498 1,808 978 376 1,185 2,516 2,744
 New Zealand 2,331 7,913 2,866 325 2,324 12,463 13,825
 Thailand 2,149 4,922 1,725 247 1,880 9,861 9,178
 Finland 1,867 2,287 1,500 341 2,298 7,028 8,888
 Turkey 1,853 3,739 1,514 309 2,121 4,972 4,262
 Portugal 1,811 3,943 1,906 372 1,602 5,193 5,933
   Nepal 1,442 4,750 1,065 325 1,384 5,414 5,302
 Saudi Arabia 1,151 6,797 5,952 1,596 4,755 15,707 34,703
 Philippines 1,097 4,164 1,961 529 4,249 14,590 19,303
 Egypt 971 3,091 2,340 400 956 3,708 3,854
Total Foreign Arrivals 635,784 1,487,303 719,978 194,495 507,704 1,913,702 2,333,796

See also

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Sri Lanka.

References

  1. ^ a b "SL eVisa".
  2. ^ a b c "Visa and passport". Timatic. International Air Transport Association through Emirates. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  3. ^ a b "Sri Lanka implements new online visa system from today". Travel Trade Journal. 17 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  4. ^ a b c "Sri Lanka opposition leader questions visa fee hike". EconomyNext. 19 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Visa exemption list" (PDF).
  6. ^ "Sri Lanka - Travel Page". www.mfa.gov.sg. Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Singapore). 4 April 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  7. ^ "Visa fee".
  8. ^ "Diplomatic & Official Visits".
  9. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions".
  10. ^ a b c d "Information".
  11. ^ "TOURIST ARRIVALS BY COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE 2016" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-07-12. Retrieved 2017-01-05.
  12. ^ "Tourist Arrivals by Region – December 2016 & December October 2018" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-11-23. Retrieved 2018-02-03.
  13. ^ Including Hong Kong and Macau.

External links

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