Sri Lanka: free visas for tourists from 35 countries

Starting October 1, 2024, and for 6 months, Sri Lanka will issue free 30-day visas to tourists from 35 countries.

Yesterday, the Sri Lankan authorities announced the introduction of a visa-free policy for tourists from 35 countries from October 1, 2024.

Today, the Cabinet of Ministers issued a statement clarifying that this visa-free regime will instead result in the free issuance of 30-day tourist visas to citizens of these countries.

“During the Council of Ministers held on 25/04/2024, the appointment of a committee of experts was approved to study and submit a report containing recommendations on the methods followed by other countries in issuing free tourist visas”, the Cabinet first explains.

The report of the Council of Ministers states that accordingly, the appointed committee of experts “studied and submitted a detailed report on eight countries competing with Sri Lanka in the field of tourism and the Honourable President presented the said report to the attention of the Council of Ministers”.

Finally, the Cabinet announced that in order to implement the recommendations of this committee of experts, and on the basis of said recommendations, “it was decided to give the approval of the Council of Ministers to issue, for a period of 6 months, free visas valid for 30 days from 01-10-2024 for a total of 35 countries”.

Which countries are eligible for free Sri Lanka visa ?

Since August 2, 2024, the Sri Lanka Electronic Visa (e-Visa) portal has been inoperative.

This suspension follows the issuance of interim orders by the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka regarding issues with the allocation and management of the www.srilankaevisa.lk platform following its privatisation.

The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka has also ordered the return to the electronic travel authorization (ETA) system, previously managed by the country’s immigration.

Tourists who have entered Sri Lanka since the beginning of August are being issued a visa on arrival at the country’s entry points.

Return of the ETA or reactivation of the e-Visa system ? We hope to have a clearer picture by October.

Here is the list of countries whose citizens will be able to get a free 30-day visa to Sri Lanka starting October 1, 2024:

• Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belarus, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Oman, Poland, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and United States.