Sri Lanka’s Department of Immigration & Emigration confirmed on 7 November that, with immediate effect, all short-stay visitors must secure an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) before boarding flights to Colombo. The clarification ends pandemic-era practice that allowed certain nationalities to obtain approval at the airport.
Crucially for India—the island’s largest visitor source—the government extended its popular fee-waiver pilot through December 2025. Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai and Russian passport holders can still obtain an ETA free of charge for tourism purposes. Business travellers, however, must pay the standard levy. The move aims to balance tighter border analytics with incentives to rebuild arrivals, which topped two million in 2024.
![Sri Lanka mandates pre-departure ETA but keeps fee waiver for Indian tourists]()
For mobility teams sending employees to client sites, offshore IT centres or construction projects in Sri Lanka, the change means a hard “no boarding” rule: airlines will deny passengers without an approved ETA number. HR departments should update pre-trip checklists and remind travellers that processing, though often instant, can take 24 hours during peak periods.
Travel agents welcomed the clarity but warned that the grace period for fee-exempt nationalities could be revisited in the 2026 budget. Corporates may wish to lock in project travel this financial year to capitalise on cost savings.
Crucially for India—the island’s largest visitor source—the government extended its popular fee-waiver pilot through December 2025. Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai and Russian passport holders can still obtain an ETA free of charge for tourism purposes. Business travellers, however, must pay the standard levy. The move aims to balance tighter border analytics with incentives to rebuild arrivals, which topped two million in 2024.
For mobility teams sending employees to client sites, offshore IT centres or construction projects in Sri Lanka, the change means a hard “no boarding” rule: airlines will deny passengers without an approved ETA number. HR departments should update pre-trip checklists and remind travellers that processing, though often instant, can take 24 hours during peak periods.
Travel agents welcomed the clarity but warned that the grace period for fee-exempt nationalities could be revisited in the 2026 budget. Corporates may wish to lock in project travel this financial year to capitalise on cost savings.
