While American tourists have grown accustomed to traveling to countries like France or Mexico with little more than a plane ticket, some countries have only just begun to relax their visa policies for visitors from Western countries.
Thailand recently increased its visa-free travel period from 30 to 60 days, while Kenya took the unconventional step of eliminating visas altogether, regardless of a person's nationality (this, naturally, does not mean that foreigners can stay in the country indefinitely, as arrival and departure are still tracked in an online system).
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Commonly sought out by tourists wanting to see ancient forts and verdant rice fields, as well as ride the famous blue train from Kandy to Badulla, Sri Lanka previously required visitors from countries such as the US and UK to apply for an electronic travel authorisation for visits of up to 30 days and a full consular visa for any longer stay.
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Amid the suspension of its eVisa application software due to multiple controversies surrounding its management, Sri Lanka has been issuing tourists requiring visas upon arrival since August 2, a process that has significantly slowed the flow of traffic at its borders.
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As a result of the new obstacles and a desire to boost the country's tourism industry, the Sri Lankan government has finally decided to take the plunge and remove short-stay visa requirements for visitors from 35 countries. Along with Americans, citizens of France, the United Kingdom, Australia, India, Saudi Arabia and South Korea are included in the list of travelers with newly acquired visa-free access.
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'Countries that compete with Sri Lanka in the field of tourism'
The Sri Lankan Cabinet issued a statement saying it has “studied and submitted a detailed report on eight countries competing with Sri Lanka in the field of tourism and the Honourable President brought the said report to the attention of the Cabinet.”
The change will take effect on October 1 and remain in place for the next six months, at which point the government will evaluate whether to make it permanent or replace it with another measure. Citizens of other countries, such as Afghanistan and Syria, are not affected by the new travel program and must apply for a visa for Sri Lanka at the country's consulate as before.
“Today the Cabinet approved a Singapore-like one-cut system for all 35 countries with visa-free access to commence with immediate effect,” former Sri Lankan Tourism Minister and Presidential Adviser on Tourism Affairs Harin Fernando wrote on x, the social media platform formerly known as twitter.
The mention of Singapore refers to the country's move to completely eliminate the need for physical passport verification at Changi Airport and other entry points into the country.
While it is currently only available to visitors from certain nearby countries at specific crossings, the idea is to introduce biometric and facial recognition technology to the point where anyone arriving will already have their identification and immigration details in the customs system.
