Tourists planning to visit Sri Lanka soon will need to obtain a visa on arrival following the temporary suspension of the recent electronic visa system (e-Visa).
As of Friday, August 2, travelers can no longer apply for visas online before traveling to Sri Lanka…
In a statement published on the official government electronic visa issuance portal www.srilankaevisa.lk, VFS Global, the company managing the e-Visa system, stated that it had “been notified of certain interim orders issued by the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka today pertaining to the agreement under which this platform is operated. In view of these orders, the website is suspended effective 2 August at 17:00 hours Sri Lanka Standard Time”.
The company, which specializes in visa processing outsourcing for governments, clarified that “for applicants, whose visa applications is under process, in case you have applied on 2 August after 17:00 hours Sri Lanka Standard Time you will receive a refund. Please share your application reference number to travel.partner@srilankaevisa.lk”.
Possible reintroduction of the previous ETA system
On April 17, 2024, Sri Lanka replaced its electronic travel authorization (ETA) system with an e-Visa process managed by a consortium including the foreign companies VFS Global, GBS Technology, and IVS Global Services.
On Friday, the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka suspended the e-Visa system by issuing an interim injunction order invalidating the decision made by the Cabinet to delegate the management of the e-Visa service to foreign companies.
The electronic visa system has undergone intense scrutiny due to allegations of procedural violations, corruption, and breaches of public trust during the contracting process. The Supreme Court’s suspension of the Cabinet’s decision aims to address these concerns and restore transparency.
The suspension of the e-Visa system will remain in place until the court rules on the petition.
The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka also ordered the reinstatement of the previously used ETA portal, which was operated by Mobitel, a Sri Lankan telecommunications company.
In a circular, the Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO) announced that the ETA system is expected to be operational “within the course of next week” and is “pleased about the reestablishment of the simple and userfriendly ETA system and will keep it’s members posted on any further updates on the progress of the reestablishment of the ETA system”.
Viyani Gunathilaka, the Secretary of the Ministry of Public Security, confirmed today that discussions are ongoing with officials from the Department of Immigration and Emigration to swiftly resolve this situation.
Travelers can obtain a visa on arrival in Sri Lanka
As many Sri Lankan diplomatic missions around the world are now making clear, including Sri Lankan embassies in the UK, Germany and Japan, tourists who do not have an approved e-Visa can apply for a visa on arrival in the country.
Nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, North Korea, Ghana, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Syria cannot obtain a visa upon arrival in Sri Lanka.
Applicants from these countries must submit their applications to the headquarters of the Department of Immigration through a representative.
Why are they closing the website…damn
I’m a US citizen and I have a flight coming to Sri Lanka from Thailand on September 24 but the eVisa site was shut down before I obtained my visa.
This article is nearly a Godsend of information that I have desperately searching for but it still leaves a gap in the information needed for those of us entering Sri Lanka at this time.
The article tells us that we can acquire a “Visa On Arrival” but it doesn’t inform us about the ETA, do we need the ETA or do we just show up in Colombo and expect that we will not need the ETA and we will be able to get the Visa on Arrival?
et ceux qui ont deja obtenu leurs E-visa, il est valable du coup ?
Bonjour Karina,
Tout à fait, les visas électroniques précédemment approuvés, et en cours de validité, restent valables malgré la récente suspension du service en ligne.
Any update regarding resumption of services or how can we apply for visit visa now??
Hi Anza 👋,
Not yet, unfortunately…
I applied for the visa on 1st August and paid the fee but the website got blocked
This is a classic case of the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” syndrome. SL’s original visa application system worked superbly until the powers that be decided on change, much to the detriment of the tourist trade, with exorbitant fees and questionable practices.