Sri Lanka is one of the first countries in Asia to open its borders to tourism! And the travel restrictions are not really strict, making it a popular travel destination in 2022. In this blog post, I will explain you how to travel to Sri Lanka during the Covid pandemic and what kind of documents you should prepare.
The information on Internet are not always clear (even on the official website) so I will make sure to write a simple, brief and easy-to-understand guide!
To make it simple, I will only cover the travel restrictions for vaccinated travellers. Indeed, if you are not vaccinated, it will be a bit challenging to visit Sri Lanka during this pandemic as you would have to go through a mandatory quarantine.
Please find below the 5 main documents that you need to prepare to travel to Sri Lanka during the corona pandemic.
1. Vaccination Certificate
For Sri Lankan authorities, to be considered as a vaccinated traveler, you need to be “fully vaccinated”. This means that you should have received at least 2 shots of vaccine (one for Janssen vaccine) plus a period of two weeks after the last shot.
Notes: At the moment, no booster shots are required by Sri Lankan authorities.
To prove that you are vaccinated, you will have to show the original version of your vaccination certificate in English. If you are certificate is not in English, you will have to make a certified translation.
In terms of types of vaccines, there are no specific restrictions as long as your vaccine is approved by the WHO.
2. Negative PCR Test
In addition to the vaccination certificate, you will have to present a negative PCR test report before to travel to Sri Lanka. The test needs to be done 72h (3 days) before the time of your flight.
Please also note that vaccinated travellers won’t have to do another PCR test at the airport in Sri Lanka.
3. Health Declaration Form
Before your trip, you will have to fill out this Health Declaration Form which is quiet easy to complete to be honest. You will have to upload some documents like your vaccination certificate, your PCR test results report and so on. As soon as you are done with the form, you will receive a QR code that you need to keep on your phone.
When you arrive at the airport in Sri Lanka, the immigration officials will scan that QR code before to allow you to enter the country.
4. Travel Insurance Covid-19 Sri Lanka
From the 1st of January 2022, a Covid travel insurance is mandatory for all travelers visiting Sri Lanka. You can apply for it here and it costs just 12$ (for 30 days).
If you have another valid travel insurance, you will have to subscribe to the insurance recommended by the government anyway. For more info about what the official insurance covers, you can check out this pdf.
5. Online Tourist Visa (ETA)
To finish, as usual, you will need to apply for an online tourist visa before to travel to Sri Lanka. It costs 20$ and you can do it via this ETA official website. This tourist visa will allow you to stay in Sri Lanka for a maximum of 30 days.
When you will go through immigration, the authorities may ask you to justify that your stay is less than 30 days by showing your return flight. It’s not always the case but I recommend you to get one just in case they ask you for it. If you don’t have one, you will have to buy a return ticket at the airport.
Notes: To get the tourist visa to Sri Lanka, make sure you apply only through the official website I mentioned above. Some websites claim to be able to provide a visa too but most of them are scammers!
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That’s it! Quiet easy right? After you went through these 5 steps, you will be ready to enjoy this gorgeous island with beautiful beaches, delicious food and a fascinating culture. If you want to know what cities you should visit in priority, make sure you read my recommended itinerary in Sri Lanka!
Happy travels and enjoy Sri Lanka!
MF