Sri Lanka has announced the extension of its free visa on arrival program, initially offered as a pilot project to seven countries: India, China, Russia, Malaysia, Japan, Indonesia, and Thailand. This program, initially set to expire at the end of March 2024, has been extended until April 30th. Tourism Minister Harin Fernando confirmed the extension via tweet, indicating a final decision on a further extension would be made in the coming weeks.
Industry experts acknowledge that the free visa program has primarily benefited tourist arrivals from India and Russia. While the impact on other targeted countries hasn’t been as significant, the overall effect on tourist numbers has been positive.
Sri Lanka is on track to surpass the one million tourist arrival mark for the period December 2023 to March 31, 2024. Each month since December has seen arrivals exceeding 200,000, with March 2024 recording the highest number at 209,181. The cumulative total for the period January to March stands at 608,475, with January and February contributing 208,253 and 218,350 arrivals respectively.