1. Visit Visas
Australian nationals along with other nationals listed in the Schedule ‘A’ visiting Sri Lanka as bona-fide tourists are permitted to enter Sri Lanka without a prior visa, and those tourists will be granted visas with validity of 30 days on arrival at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo, provided they possess the following :
· A valid passport (with 06 months validity)
· An air ticket for return/onward travel
· Availability of sufficient foreign exchange (currency/travellers cheques/credit cards) for maintenance
(i)
Bona-fide Tourists
With effect from
01.12.2006, the visas valid for 30 days granted to tourists of countries listed
in Schedule ‘A’ on arrival at the airport, shall not be
extended beyond 30 days. This
regulation will be in force until a further notice is issued.
It is therefore, advised to obtain prior visas from a Sri Lanka Mission
abroad (in case of NSW, South Australia and Tasmania – the Consulate General
of Sri Lanka in Sydney), if the proposed stay in Sri Lanka is expected to exceed
30 days.
Visit visa or an
endorsement granted at the port of arrival is meant only for a short-term stay
and is not valid for employment or for engaging in business.
A visit visa is meant mainly for tourism.
Granting of a Residence
Visa to a person, who has already come to Sri Lanka on an endorsement or Visit
Visa is against the Government’s visa policy.
Hence the following
documents shall be submitted to the Consulate General to obtain a visit visa :
The nationals of
countries listed in Schedule ‘A’, who visit Sri Lanka for purposes other
than tourism and nationals of countries not listed in the Schedule ‘A’
should obtain prior visa whatever the purpose of their visit.
Hence the following documents shall be submitted to the Consulate General to obtain a visit visa :
· A valid passport (with 06 months validity)
· An air ticket for return/onward travel
·
Availability of sufficient foreign exchange (currency/travellers
cheques/credit cards) for maintenance
Foreign
nationals entering Sri Lanka on Visit Visas or Landing Endorsements
as tourists will not be allowed to change status of the visa under any
circumstances.
(ii)
Foreign Journalists/Media personnel
All journalists/media personnel visiting Sri Lanka need to obtain visa prior to their arrival in Sri Lanka and media accreditation will not be recommended for any media personnel arrive in Sri Lanka on tourist visa.
Media
accreditation for the visiting media personnel will be extended only if they are
in possession of a relevant visa obtained from the Consulate General in
Sydney/Sri Lanka High Commission in Canberra.
For the clearance of
equipment brought in by visiting media personnel, the following are required :
·
A temporary import document known as ‘Carnet’ for professional
cameras and media equipment.
·
In the absence of a Carnet, a bank guarantee for the value of the
equipment and cameras.
·
A prior license from the Sri Lanka Telecommunications Regulatory
Commission for telephone equipment such as satellite phones.
Since there are further
requirements applicable to Journalisst/Media personnel, who visit Sri Lanka on
different purposes such as media coverage, documentaries, filming etc., please
contact the Consulate General in Sydney for further
information.
2. Short-term
Business/Other visas (eg. Business/Trade promotion with single/multiple entry,
Seminars,
Scholarships/Training
Australians/other
foreign nationals visiting Sri Lanka on business/purposes other than business
have to obtain visa prior to their visit to Sri Lanka.
Applications
for such visas have to be submitted to the Consulate General in Sydney, together
with the following documents :
·
Duly completed visa
application (could be downloaded from this website)
·
Passport of the applicant (validity of at least 3 months)
·
Two recent passport size colour photographs of the applicant.
·
Letter from the local employer/agency giving details and the
purpose of visit with specific dates of travel.
·
Invitation/correspondence from the relevant organization in Sri
Lanka.
·
Visa fee of AU$ 60/-.
Visa
issued under this category would be valid for a maximum period of 03 months
depending on the nature of business. Multiple
entry visa up to three months (03) will be issued to a foreigner, who wishes to
enter Sri Lanka on several occasions for the purpose of business/trade
promotions with the prior permission of the Controller, Immigration &
Emigration, short-term Business visa with multiple entry can be obtained from
Sri Lanka Consulate in Sydney. Those foreigners visit Sri Lanka with a 03 month multiple
entry Business visa can apply for an extension of visa period up to a maximum
period of one year by presenting the required documents.
Download
- Visa Form
further
information can be obtained by contacting the Consulate Genera in Sydney.
3. Long-Term Business
Visa with Multiple Entry
Long-term
Multiple entry visas will be issued to foreign nationals listed below who wish
to enter Sri Lanka on several occasions for the purpose of business or
investment, subject to careful screening of the bona-fide of such applicants.
The maximum period of a multiple visa would be 12 months and each stay in
Sri Lanka should not exceed 03 months.
27 – EU Countries – Austria, Belgium,
Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany,
Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The
Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden.
Gulf Countries – Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman,
Kuwait, Qatar, UAE
USA, UK, Canada, Jordan, Japan, People’s
Republic of China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Maldives, Myanmar, Australia,
New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Singapore and Thailand.
Eligibility
Business visa - Foreign nationals who visit Sri Lanka for the purpose of
Business promotion, business discussion, consultancy,
Inspection of quality of goods, installation of foreign purchased equipment etc., on several occasions within a year may be eligible to apply for Multiple Entry Visa.
Investor - Foreign nationals who visit Sri Lanka for the purpose of
Seeking investment opportunities, inspecting investment in
Sri Lanka etc. on several occasions within a year may be
Eligible to apply for multiple entry visa.
Fees for - Multiple Entry Visa valid for 03 months – A$ 180/-
Australian
citizens Multiple
Entry Visa valid for 12 months - A$
380/-
4. Resident
Visa
a) Foreign nationals who wish to obtain residence visas/working visas in
Sri Lanka are required to have obtained prior approval from the Controller of immigration and Emigration of Sri Lanka. The local company or organization based in Sri Lanka has to make such requests to the Department of Immigration and Emigration prior to the arrival of those expatriates and their dependents, giving details, such as, the name and the nationality of the expatriate; duration of stay in Sri Lanka: nature of the assignment, etc., along with the recommendation of the related line Ministry/Organization.
On receipt of requests from sponsors as per above, the Department will
Convey its
concurrence to the respective Sri Lankan Mission abroad (in case of NSW, South
Australia and Tasmania - Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Sydney) for the
issuance of an entry visa valid for one month with instructions to apply for
Residence Visa on arrival. Once
this process is completed, the expatriate could visit Sri Lanka with an entry
visa given by the respective Sri Lankan Mission abroad and subsequently
apply for the residence visa to the Department of Immigration and Emigration.
b)
The same procedure will apply for Residence visas/Working visas for
foreign nationals, who engage in NGOs, Social Services organizations, Religious
Organizations, International Organizations and various other projects.
Their applications for Residence visas need to be recommended by the
relevant Ministries, before submission to the Controller of Immigration and
Emigration.
Accordingly, all categories of persons who are expected to engage in paid or unpaid business, trade, employment, investment services or studies should obtain the necessary entry visa from the Consulate General following the procedure stipulated in paragraphs (a) & (b) above.