# The Sri Lanka ETA, explained properly

*Forty nationalities now pay nothing. Everyone still needs one.*

Published 24 August 2026 · last checked 16 September 2026 · https://srilankatour.travel/guides/sri-lanka-visa-eta

Sri Lanka's entry rules have changed three times in as many years, which is why most of what you will find online about them is wrong. On 25 May 2026 the Department of Immigration and Emigration made the tourist ETA free of charge for nationals of forty countries. It did not abolish the ETA. You still have to get one, it is still free only if you are on the list, and the site you get it from matters.

## Key facts

- **Official portal:** eta.gov.lk — and nowhere else
- **Free for:** 40 nationalities, plus Maldives, Seychelles and Singapore
- **Everyone else:** US$50 online (US$20 for SAARC nationals)
- **On arrival:** US$60, or US$25 for SAARC, and the airline may not board you without an ETA
- **Children under 12:** Free, any nationality
- **Validity:** 30 days from arrival, double entry
- **Extensions:** Online at eservices.immigration.gov.lk, or in person at Battaramulla
- **Checked:** 16 September 2026, against immigration.gov.lk and eta.gov.lk

## What actually changed in May 2026

With effect from 25 May 2026, nationals of forty listed countries can obtain the tourist ETA free of charge for thirty days, with double entry. That is the change, and it is a real one — for a British, Indian, German or Australian passport holder, entry to Sri Lanka now costs nothing.

Three things people get wrong about it. First, free does not mean waived: every foreign national, including all forty of those nationalities, still has to obtain an ETA before travelling. Second, the fee-free ETA is thirty days — if you want longer, you extend it in-country and you pay for that. Third, ETA fees paid before 25 May 2026 are not refundable, so if you paid in April you paid.

The scheme was approved by Cabinet on 30 March 2026 and endorsed by Parliament on 7 May 2026 under the Immigration and Emigration Act. As of 16 September 2026 the Department has published no end date or review date for it. That is not a promise it will last; it is simply the current position, and we will change this page the day it changes.

> **Verify before you fly:** Sri Lanka has changed this policy repeatedly since 2024 and there is no guarantee the current list survives the next budget. Check eta.gov.lk yourself in the week before you travel. We re-checked the list, the fee table and the extension table against the Department's own pages on 16 September 2026, and none of them had moved; the date is at the foot of the page every time we look again.

## The forty countries that pay nothing

Reproduced from the Department of Immigration and Emigration notice of 24 May 2026. Diplomatic, official, service and ordinary passport holders of these countries all qualify.

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

Separately, Maldives, Seychelles and Singapore have bilateral reciprocal arrangements and also pay nothing. Maldivian nationals get ninety days rather than thirty.

## What everyone else pays

|  | SAARC nationals | All other countries |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Tourist ETA, 30 days, double entry — applied online | US$20 | US$50 |
| Tourist visa on arrival at the airport | US$25 | US$60 |
| Business ETA, 30 days, multiple entry | US$30 | US$55 |
| Transit visa, 2 days, single entry | Free | Free |
| Children under 12, any nationality | Free | Free |

*Official fees from immigration.gov.lk and eta.gov.lk, checked 16 September 2026. SAARC covers Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal and Pakistan — but India, Nepal and Pakistan are on the free list and the Maldives has its own agreement, so in practice the SAARC rate is paid by Bangladeshi, Bhutanese and Afghan nationals.*

Note the on-arrival premium. Turning up without an ETA costs you an extra ten dollars and a queue at two in the morning after a nine-hour flight. There is a second reason not to rely on it: the Department's 25 May 2026 notice says every foreign national must hold an ETA before arrival, while its fee table still lists an on-arrival visa, and as of 16 September 2026 neither has been withdrawn. Airlines read the first one. Apply online.

## Staying longer than thirty days

The ETA is valid for thirty days, whether you paid for it or not. Beyond that you extend it, and since 2026 there are two ways to do that. The Department of Immigration and Emigration now takes extension applications online at eservices.immigration.gov.lk, which is the route we would try first. The older route is in person at the head office — the building called Suhurupaya on Sri Subhuthipura Road in Battaramulla, on the eastern edge of Colombo — which is a morning rather than a five-minute job and considerably easier if you arrive when it opens. Either way, an extension is single entry: leave the country and it is cancelled.

| Your nationality | 31–90 days | 91–180 days | 181–270 days |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| UK, Ireland, most of western and northern Europe, Australia, NZ, Canada, Japan, Switzerland, Norway | US$100 | US$150 | US$200 |
| United States | US$100 | US$200 | Not listed |
| Singapore, Maldives, Seychelles, Czech Republic | Free | US$150 | US$200 |
| Everywhere else | US$60 | US$150 | US$200 |

*Extension fees from immigration.gov.lk, checked 16 September 2026. The 181–270 day band exists in the fee table; the Department does not say in words that 270 days is the ceiling.*

> **Overstaying is expensive:** Leave within seven days of your visa expiring and you pay the visa fee at the airport and nothing else. Between seven and fourteen days over, the penalty is US$250 on top. Beyond fourteen days it is US$500. These are set by gazette and they are not negotiable at the desk.

## The copycat sites, and how to spot them

Search for the Sri Lanka ETA and a good half of the first page will be commercial operators who take your details, submit the same free form on your behalf, and charge you forty to eighty dollars for it. They are not illegal and they are not scams in the criminal sense. They are simply selling you something the government now gives away.

- The only official application site is eta.gov.lk, run by the Department of Immigration and Emigration, whose own site is immigration.gov.lk. Type the address rather than clicking an advert, and apply one test: the domain must end in .gov.lk, not merely contain the letters gov.
- The official site never charges a service fee, a processing fee, or an expedite fee. The third-party sites we looked at in September 2026 were charging between US$79 and US$139 for an ETA that is free or US$50.
- If a site quotes a price in euros or pounds, it is not the government.
- A genuine ETA approval usually arrives by email within twenty-four to seventy-two hours. Sites promising an hour are selling urgency.
- You do not need a printed copy. Immigration looks you up by passport number. Having the approval on your phone is enough, and having nothing at all is usually fine too, because it is in the system.

## What immigration actually asks for

- A passport valid for at least six months from your date of arrival.
- Proof of onward or return travel. It is a formal condition of the visa. Rarely checked at Colombo, occasionally checked at the airline desk before you board.
- An address for your first night. Any hotel booking does. They want a line on the form, not an itinerary.
- Money: the Department lists 'adequate funds for the stay and the return passage' as a condition, with no figure attached. In practice nobody at Katunayake has asked us or our travellers to show it. Have a card that works and do not worry about it.

Arrival at Katunayake is generally quick — twenty minutes through immigration on a normal night, longer if three wide-bodies land together, which between 01:00 and 03:00 they often do. There is a bank counter airside, and the rates there are better than the ones in the arrivals hall.

Before you fly:
- [Flights to Sri Lanka](https://srilankatour.travel/guides/flights-to-sri-lanka)
- [Negombo](https://srilankatour.travel/places/negombo)

## Frequently asked questions

**Do I need a visa for Sri Lanka in 2026?**

You need an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA), which every foreign national must obtain before arrival. Since 25 May 2026 the ETA is free of charge for nationals of forty countries — including the UK, India, the United States, Germany, France, Australia, China and the UAE — plus Maldives, Seychelles and Singapore. Free does not mean exempt: you still have to apply.

**How much does the Sri Lanka ETA cost?**

Nothing, if you hold one of the forty listed passports. Otherwise US$50 applied online for a 30-day double-entry tourist visa, or US$20 for SAARC nationals. Applying on arrival at the airport costs more — US$60, or US$25 for SAARC. Children under twelve are free regardless of nationality.

**What is the official Sri Lanka ETA website?**

eta.gov.lk, run by the Department of Immigration and Emigration. Everything else is a third-party operator charging you a service fee for submitting a form you can submit yourself. There is no official expedite service and no official processing fee.

**How long does the Sri Lanka ETA take to be approved?**

Usually within twenty-four to seventy-two hours by email, and frequently within a few hours. Apply at least a week ahead so that a mistyped passport number is a nuisance rather than a crisis.

**How long can I stay in Sri Lanka on a tourist ETA?**

Thirty days from arrival, with double entry — so you can leave and come back once within that window, which is useful if you are pairing Sri Lanka with the Maldives or southern India. Extensions to ninety, then a hundred and eighty days, are applied for online at eservices.immigration.gov.lk or in person at the immigration head office in Battaramulla, at US$60 to US$100 for the first extension depending on nationality. An extension is single entry.

**What happens if I overstay my Sri Lanka visa?**

Depart within seven days of expiry and you pay the applicable visa fee at the port of departure with no penalty. Between seven and fourteen days over, a US$250 penalty applies on top of the fee. Over fourteen days, it is US$500. These figures come from Gazette 2337/10 and are enforced.

**Do children need a Sri Lanka ETA?**

Yes, every traveller needs their own ETA including infants, but it is free of charge for children under twelve of any nationality. Apply for each child separately using their own passport details.


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Source: https://srilankatour.travel/guides/sri-lanka-visa-eta
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