Sri Lanka will launch an on-line visa application system & plans to scrap the visa on arrival for foreigners, except Maldivians and Singaporeans as per reports.

The government was to discontinue granting landing permits from October 1, but the scheme was put on hold following objections from the tourism industry. However, the authorities will now implement the system soon, officials said.

An immigration department source said the tourism industry had argued that foreign holidaymakers would be discouraged from visiting if they have to go to a Sri Lankan embassy for a visa before travelling.

The Sri Lankan president's office in a statement said that the authorities will soon launch an on-line application system for foreign nationals to get their visas through the Internet. "The President instructed officials to quickly introduce a simple system of obtaining visas through the use of the Internet," the statement said.

"We are working on a system to expedite the visa applications online," an official at the immigration department said. He said visitors from Singapore and the Maldives, which grant Sri Lankan passport holders landing permits on arrival, would be exempted from having to obtain a visa before reaching the island.

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