Sri Lanka, recently grappling with issues in managing its electronic visa system, suspended the e-Visa service on August 2, 2024. Since then, travelers have been unable to apply for visas online through the official government portal, www.srilankaevisa.lk, and have instead been issued visas upon arrival.
In a move likely to attract more tourists, Sri Lanka has announced a temporary solution. “The Cabinet has decided to grant visa-free access to citizens from 35 countries, including the UK, USA, Canada, Germany, Australia, Saudi Arabia, China, India, Russia, South Korea, and Japan, starting from October 1, 2024, for a period of six months,” declared Ali Sabry, Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.
This announcement follows a previous proposal by Tourism Minister Harin Fernando, who had earlier advocated for visa-free entry for tourists from 67 countries. The initiative aimed to boost Sri Lanka’s tourism numbers to meet the target of 2.3 million arrivals by the end of 2024.
As of now, the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) reports over 1.3 million tourist arrivals for the year.
In an update shared on X (formerly Twitter), Minister Sabry expressed optimism, calling this a “first step towards a visa-free regime” and revealing the full list of countries whose citizens can travel to Sri Lanka without a visa starting October 1, 2024. The list includes:
- 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
- United States
This temporary visa-free regime is expected to enhance Sri Lanka’s appeal to international travelers and stimulate the tourism industry during the upcoming peak season.
