Sri Lanka now requires all visitors to apply for visas online

From 1 January 2012, all short term visitors and transit passengers to Sri Lanka must apply for their visas online. Sri Lanka closed their visa on arrival facility for citizens of all but two countries, replacing it with an online application system where visitors will have to apply before arriving to the country.

The new electronic travel authorisation system applies to passport holders of 78 nations. Only passport holders from Singapore and Maldives are exempt from using the online system and will be eligible for on arrival visas are exempted from the rule since they too provide visa-free travel for Sri Lankans.

The Sri Lankan government said that the on arrival visa system where tourists were given 30-day visas had to be closed due to the increasing number of people who fail to comply with Sri Lankan immigration law.

The new electronic travel authorisation system will charge a fee of US$10 from travellers from the SAARC countries and US$20 from other passport holders. SAARC countries include Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan.