Sri Lanka Visa and ETA: Everything You Need Before You Fly

Most people who visit Sri Lanka need a visa. Since 25 May 2026, that visa is free for citizens of 40 countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, India, Canada and most of Europe.

Free does not mean you can skip it. You still have to apply online before you fly. Turn up without one and the airline can refuse to board you at your departure airport, which is a bad way to start a holiday.

This guide covers who needs a visa, what it costs if you are not on the free list, how to apply on the official site, and the traps that catch people out. Visa fees are also one of the few fixed costs in a trip here, so it is worth reading alongside a proper Sri Lanka trip cost breakdown when you are working out your budget.

I live in Sri Lanka and I have walked more than a few visitors through this process, including a couple who paid US$89 to a site that was not the government one. That part is further down.

Do you need a visa for Sri Lanka?

Yes, almost certainly. Sri Lanka does not have a general visa waiver. Nearly every foreign visitor needs either a free ETA or a paid one before arrival.

The Electronic Travel Authorization, or ETA, is the standard tourist visa. Here is where you stand:

The free scheme started on 25 May 2026. If you paid for an ETA before that date, the Department of Immigration and Emigration has confirmed that fee is not refundable.

The 40 countries that get it free

Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belarus, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Poland, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and the United States.

If your country is on that list, you get 30 days and you can enter twice within those 30 days. That double entry is genuinely useful if you are pairing Sri Lanka with a few days in the Maldives or southern India.

The full and current list sits on the Department of Immigration and Emigration site. Check it before you travel, because this scheme has been introduced, withdrawn and reintroduced more than once in the last few years.

What is the Sri Lanka ETA?

This trips people up more than anything else, so let me be plain about it.

ETA, e-visa, electronic travel authorisation and Sri Lanka tourist visa all mean the same thing. There is one system. You apply online, you get an approval notice by email, and immigration issues the actual visa in your passport when you land.

You are not getting a sticker or a stamp in advance. What you get is an approval reference. Print it or keep it on your phone. Airline staff sometimes ask to see it at check-in.

A few other visa types exist, but they are not what most readers need:

• Business visa. For meetings, conferences and short work trips. US$30 for SAARC citizens, US$55 for everyone else.
• Transit visa. Two days, free, single entry. Only if you are passing through.
• Residence visa. A different process entirely, handled at the immigration head office in Colombo.

If you are coming for a holiday, you want the tourist ETA.

ETA versus visa on arrival

Sri Lanka's official fee schedule still lists an on-arrival price: US$25 for SAARC citizens and US$60 for everyone else, compared with US$20 and US$50 online.

But the Department of Immigration now tells all visitors to get their ETA before arriving. In practice, relying on getting one at the airport is a gamble that is not worth taking. You pay more, you queue longer after a long flight, and your airline may not let you board without proof of an approved ETA in the first place.

Apply online. It takes about ten minutes.

Sri Lanka visa requirements and passport rules

Before you start the form, check these.

Your passport must be valid for at least six months from the day you arrive. Not from the day you apply, and not from the day you fly home. Six months from arrival. This is the single most common reason people get refused, and it is entirely avoidable.

You need a blank page. Immigration stamps your passport on entry and again on exit.

You need an onward or return ticket. Officers do not always ask, but they can, and they do more often with one-way arrivals.

You need an address for your first night. The application form asks where you are staying. A hotel booking is fine. If you have not booked anything yet, it helps to have at least shortlisted an area. Sketching a rough route with the Sri Lanka trip planner before you fill the form in is usually enough, because the country is smaller than people expect and your first-night choice shapes the rest of the trip.

Some nationalities cannot apply online at all. Citizens of Cameroon, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Syria, along with Taiwan passport holders, have to apply through a Sri Lankan sponsor at the department's head office. If that is you, start early. It is not a same-week process.

How to apply for a Sri Lanka ETA online

The only official site is eta.gov.lk. Read that again, because the next section explains why it matters.

The process:

1. Go to eta.gov.lk and choose the tourist ETA. Do not use a search engine advert to get there. Type the address.
2. Fill in your personal details exactly as they appear in your passport. Same spelling, same order, no nicknames. A mismatch between your ETA and your passport causes problems at the counter.
3. Enter your travel dates and your first night's address. Approximate dates are fine. The ETA is valid for 30 days from the date you actually arrive, not from the date you apply.
4. Pay, if your nationality is not on the free list. Card payment, US$20 or US$50 depending on where you are from.
5. Wait for the approval email. Keep the reference number.
6. Print it, or save it offline. Airport wifi is not something to rely on.

Approval is usually quick, often within 24 hours and sometimes within the hour. The department does not publish a guaranteed processing time, so do not leave it until the night before. Applying a week ahead costs you nothing and removes the stress.

You can check your application status on the same site if the email does not arrive.

How to avoid fake visa sites

This is the part I most want people to read.

Search for "Sri Lanka visa" and a good number of the top results are private agents. They are not illegal. They fill in the same government form on your behalf and add a service charge. That charge is typically US$40 to US$90 on top of a visa that now costs many nationalities nothing at all.

How to tell the difference:

• The official site is eta.gov.lk. Anything else is a middleman.
• A .com or .org address offering "fast track Sri Lanka visa" is not the government.
• If you are being asked for US$89 for a 30-day tourist visa, stop. The most anyone pays officially is US$50, and if you hold a UK, US, Australian, Indian or EU passport in 2026, you pay nothing.

The couple I mentioned earlier paid US$89 each. They got a valid visa, because the agent did submit the real application. They just paid US$178 for something that was free. Nothing can be done afterwards.

Sri Lanka visa fees at a glance

Citizens of the 40 free-visa countries pay nothing for the 30-day tourist ETA, which overrides the first row for most readers. SAARC means India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldives and Afghanistan, though several of those are now on the free list anyway.

Fees are set in US dollars and charged in US dollars. Current amounts are published on the official Sri Lanka ETA portal, and they do change, so treat the table above as correct at the time of writing and check before you pay.

Sri Lanka visa rules by nationality

The process is the same for everyone. What differs is the cost and, occasionally, the paperwork.

British citizens

Free since 25 May 2026. Thirty days, double entry. You still apply through eta.gov.lk before flying.

British passport holders were paying US$50 before the change, so if you are working from a guide written earlier in the year, it will tell you the wrong thing. The Foreign Office keeps its own summary on the gov.uk Sri Lanka entry requirements page, which is worth a look for the non-visa entry rules too.

Australian citizens

Free, 30 days, double entry. Same online process.

Australia is a large source market for Sri Lanka, and Melbourne and Sydney both have direct or one-stop routes into Colombo. Apply before you fly regardless of how short the trip is.

US citizens

Free, 30 days, double entry, since May 2026. Previously US$50.

Indian citizens

Free, 30 days, double entry. India is on the free list, which matters given how many Indian visitors come over for short trips and long weekends.

Indian passport holders have the most options for getting here, including short flights from Chennai, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi. The visa side is now the simplest part of the trip. There is a fuller breakdown of the Sri Lanka visa for Indian citizens, including what agents in India charge for a form that is now free.

Everyone else

If your country is not among the 40, you pay US$20 as a SAARC citizen or US$50 otherwise, for the same 30 days. The application is identical.

How long can you stay, and how to extend

The standard tourist ETA gives you 30 days from the date you arrive.

You can extend it. Tourists can usually take a stay up to 90 days, and in some cases longer, by applying for an extension. The extension is a paid process even if your original visa was free. Expect a US$20 processing fee if you are a SAARC citizen and US$50 if you are not, plus the applicable visa fee on top.

Extensions can be started online through the immigration portal, and the head office is in Battaramulla, just outside Colombo, if you need to go in person. Do not leave it until day 29. Go a week early, because if you overstay, you pay a fine on exit and it is recorded against your passport.

One thing worth knowing: the 30 days is 30 days, not a calendar month. Arrive on 3 April and your visa runs out on 2 May.

What happens when you land in Colombo

Almost everyone flies into Bandaranaike International Airport at Katunayake, about 35 kilometres north of Colombo.

The order of events:

1. Immigration. Have your passport and your ETA reference ready. The officer may ask where you are staying and how long you are here. Answer plainly. This is normally a two-minute conversation.
2. Baggage. Straightforward.
3. Customs. Green channel unless you are carrying something declarable.
4. SIM card. All the major networks have desks in arrivals, and a tourist SIM costs a few dollars for enough data to last the trip. Do this before you leave the terminal, it is cheaper and easier than doing it in town.
5. Money. There are ATMs and exchange counters in arrivals. Change enough for your first day and no more, because rates in town are usually better.
6. Getting out. This is where tired travellers overpay. Rates from the airport are negotiable and the touts know when you have just come off a ten-hour flight. Booking a Colombo airport taxi service in advance fixes the price before you arrive and takes the argument out of it entirely.

If you want to make the immigration and taxi conversations go more smoothly, a handful of essential Sinhala phrases for tourists go a surprisingly long way. Nobody expects you to speak the language, which is exactly why trying lands so well.

FAQs about Sri Lanka visas

Do I need a visa to visit Sri Lanka?

Yes. Nearly every foreign visitor needs an ETA before arriving. Since 25 May 2026 it is free for citizens of 40 countries including the UK, US, Australia, India and most of Europe, but free still means you have to apply for it online in advance.

Is the Sri Lanka ETA the same as a visa?

Yes. ETA, e-visa and tourist visa all describe the same thing in Sri Lanka. You apply online, you receive an approval by email, and the visa itself is issued in your passport when you land.

How much does a Sri Lanka tourist visa cost?

Nothing, if you hold a passport from one of the 40 free-visa countries. Otherwise it is US$20 for SAARC citizens and US$50 for everyone else, for a 30-day stay. Applying at the airport instead of online costs US$5 to US$10 more.

How long does it take to get a Sri Lanka ETA?

Often within a day, sometimes within the hour. The Department of Immigration does not publish a guaranteed turnaround, so apply about a week before you travel rather than the night before.

Can I get a visa on arrival in Sri Lanka?

The official fee schedule still lists on-arrival pricing, but immigration now advises everyone to obtain an ETA before arrival, and airlines may refuse to board you without one. Apply online. It is cheaper and faster.

How long is the Sri Lanka tourist visa valid?

Thirty days from the date you arrive, with double entry allowed inside that window. Maldivian citizens get 90 days.

Can I extend my Sri Lanka visa?

Yes, usually up to 90 days and sometimes beyond. Extensions are chargeable even if your original visa was free, and you should apply before your current visa expires rather than after.

What passport validity do I need for Sri Lanka?

At least six months from the date you arrive in Sri Lanka. This is the most common reason travellers are refused, and it is easy to check before you book.

Is the Sri Lanka free visa still available?

Yes, as of July 2026. The scheme took effect on 25 May 2026 and covers 40 countries. It has been changed before, so confirm on the official immigration site close to your travel date.

What is the official Sri Lanka visa website?

eta.gov.lk. Every other site offering Sri Lankan visas is a private agent charging a service fee on top of a government form you can fill in yourself in ten minutes.

The short version

Apply at eta.gov.lk, at least a week before you fly. Check your passport has six months left on it from your arrival date. If you are British, American, Australian, Indian or from most of Europe, it costs you nothing in 2026. If anyone is charging you US$89, close the tab.

That is genuinely all there is to it. The visa is the easiest part of planning a trip here.