On Wednesday (August 22), the media reported that the Sri Lankan government has announced visa-free access to its island nation for a period of 6 months for citizens from 35 countries including India, The UK and the United States.
The Daily Mirror newspaper cited Harin Fernando, Advisor to the Ministry of Tourism when it reported that the cabinet had taken the decision and this will be in place from October 1, 2024.
According to Mr. Fernando, it is a policy that will last for half year only.
India, UK, China, USA Germany Netherlands Belgium Spain Australia Denmark Poland Kazakhstan Saudi Arabia UAE Nepal Indonesia Russia and Thailand are included in this list
Malaysia Japan France Canada Czech Republic Italy Switzerland Austria Israel Belarus Iran Sweden South Korea Qatar Oman Bahrain New Zealand are other nations which are on that list.
Previously there was an uproar over higher fees being demanded by a foreign firm that handles on-arrival visa services in Sri Lanka.
For example, tourists from India, China, Russia, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand & Indonesia were issued with free tourist visas into Sri Lanka.
