The decision to outsource online and on-arrival tourist visa processing to three foreign companies was made despite national telecom provider SLT-Mobitel having already partially upgraded the existing electronic travel authorisation (ETA) system at the request of the Immigration Department at no cost to the government.
The fee charged by SLT-Mobitel was to have been US$ 1 per tourist application. In contrast, under the deal reached with the Singapore-registered GBS Technology Services, the UAE-registered IVS Global-FZCO, and the Dubai-headquartered VFS VF Worldwide Holdings Ltd., the companies have levied US$ 18.5 with US$ 5 added as “service” and “convenience” charges.
SLT-Mobitel’s upgrade of the ETA system was approved by the Cabinet on August 24, 2021. The decision was conveyed to the company via a letter dated September 21, 2021. In a letter sent last month to Immigration and Emigration Controller General Harsha Ilukpitiya, Mobitel claims that its first upgrade (done after November of that year) “resolved all the performance issues and cyber security aspects immediately to manage application volumes and to meet the latest payment gateway requirements to ensure timely collection of applicable government revenues”.
The Sunday Times understands that the sudden decision to enter into the IVS-GBS-VFS deal when SLT-Mobitel had already part-upgraded the ETA system also came up for discussion when senior officials of the Public Security Ministry and the Immigration Department were summoned before Parliament’s Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on Thursday. The committee is to meet again on May 14 to further discuss the matter.
Source: Sunday Times
