Sri Lankan passport

Sri Lankan passport
	The front cover of a non-biometric Sri Lankan passport.
Issued by	Sri Lanka
Type of document	Passport
Purpose	Identification
Eligibility requirements	Sri Lankan citizenship
Expiration	10 years for adults and 3 years for minors (below 16 years of age).

Sri Lankan passports are issued to citizens of Sri Lanka for the purpose of international travel. The Department of Immigration and Emigration is responsible for issuing Sri Lankan passports.

Immigration and Emigration Department will begin the process to issue biometric passports according to international standards with effect from 10 August 2015^[1]

Types

Diplomatic Passport (Light Red ) - Issued to Sri Lankan diplomats, top ranking government officials and diplomatic couriers.
Official Passport (Red ) - Issued to individuals representing the Sri Lankan government on official/state business
Ordinary Passport (Maroon ) - Issued for ordinary travel, such as vacations and business trips
- Valid for all countries
- Valid for specified countries
Emergency Certificate (Silver )
- Valid for India and Nepal (for Pilgrimage and medical treatment)
Non Machine Readable Passports (Brown ) - Issued by Sri Lanka Missions under special circumstances

All newly issued passports for adults will have a maximum validity of ten years from the date of issue under the Immigrants and Emigrants Act, regardless of when the previous passport (if any) was issued.

Cost and Validity

Type		Valid countries	Fee		Validity
Type		Valid countries	Normal Basis (10 working days)	Urgent Basis (same day)	Validity
Ordinary Passport	For adults	All countries	Rs 3,000	Rs 10,000	10 years
	For adults	Specified countries*	Rs 1,000	Rs 2,500	10 years
	For Minors (below 16 years of age)	All countries	Rs 2,000	Rs 5,000	3 years
	For Minors (below 16 years of age)	Specified countries*	Rs 1,000	Rs 1,500	3 years
Official Passport		All countries	Rs 3,000	Rs 10,000	10 years
Diplomatic Passport		All countries	Rs 3,000	Rs 10,000	10 years
Emmergency Certificate		India & Nepal	Rs 500	N/A	2 years (can be extended for further two years)
Non Machine Readable Passport & Temporary Travel Document		N/A	N/A	Rs 2,500	valid only for one way travel to Sri Lanka

Specified countries* = Bahrain, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, India, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Maldives, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

In case of a lost passport, a fine of Rs 10,000 charge in addition to the passport fee.

Identity information page

The Sri Lankan passport includes the following data:

Photograph of the holder (digital image printed on page)
Type ('PA' or 'PB' for Ordinary Passport, 'PC' for Official Passport and 'PD' for Diplomatic Passport)
Country code ('LKA' for Sri Lanka)
Passport No. (Starting with 'M' or 'N' for Ordinary Passport, 'OL' for Official Passport and 'D' for Diplomatic Passport)
Surname
Other Names
National Status ('SRI LANKAN')
Date of Birth (DD/MM/YYYY)
Sex 'M' for Male and 'F' for Female
Place of Birth (only the city or town is listed)
Date of Issue (DD/MM/YYYY)
Date of Expiry (DD/MM/YYYY)
Profession
ID No. (National Identity Card Number)
Holder's Sign (digital image printed on page)
Authority Colombo (digital image printed on page)

The information page ends with the Machine Readable Zone.

Biometric Passport

From the 10 August 2015, all newly issued passports are to be enabled with Biometric interfaces to allow holders to be applicable for 'Visa Waiver Programmes' (VWP) available in certain countries. The passport is valid like the Machine Readable PP for 10 yrs. from issuance.

Citizens interested to receive this or renew their existing passport are to be photographed by authorized photo studios around the island and be present for "fingerprint scanning' at the office in Colombo and other major cities. A list of authorized studios are available here.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: (as at 10/08/2015)

All passport applicants irrespective of age should use passport Application Form K 35A
All passport applicants including children should provide digital photograph through Authorized photo studio
Fingerprints will be collected from all applicants above 16 years at the head office and three regional offices in Sri Lanka
Applicants submitting passport applications through Sri Lanka Diplomatic Missions overseas could do so without providing fingerprints and digital photograph. Holders of such passports could provide fingerprints on their first arrival in Sri Lanka at the head office or any of the regional offices of the Department.
Inclusion of children in parents passport will NO longer be allowed and children will be issued separate passports
Children below 16 years of age whose passports are issued after 10 August 2015 are required to provide fingerprints to the Department upon reaching the age of 16 years. Holders of such passports living abroad should do so upon first arrival in Sri Lanka.
No Emergency Certificate (EC) shall be issued for applicants below 60 years