HOW TO GET TOURIST VISA FOR SRILANKA.

Unlike many other countries, obtaining a tourist visa for Sri Lanka is a hassel free process. There are 2 ways:

1. VOA
2. E-Visa

1. VOA : Visa fees is 25$ (for SAARC countries) and the counter is located near to immigration. A credit card should work as proof of funds. I didn’t avail this option so do not have first hand information on this one but I believe requirements would be similar to getting an ETA.

2. E-Visa: Visit http://www.eta.gov.lk/slvisa/visainfo/center.jsp and fill up the application form. Please make sure you have following items in place :

• A confirmed return ticket within 30 days from the date of entry
• Hotel booking for at least one day. You need to enter place of stay in application form.
• A credit card for making payments.

The Visa fees is 20 $ for SAARC countries. Once you complete the form and submit the application you get an acknowledgement email. The official time to receive the Visa is 24 hours but I got mine within next 10 minutes. One can apply for tourist visa as a group too. Opt for this option while visiting in a group.

It is better to take a print out of the granted ETA received, though it was not checked at the immigration as they had the entries in their system based on passport number. Once you land at Colombo airport, head straight towards immigration counter with print out of ETA and passport.

Since getting an ETA is extremely simple process, it’s best to get the visa beforehand.  There was not much crowd at immigration and it hardly took 10 minutes to clear the immigration.