# Do Ukrainians Need a Visa for Sri Lanka in 2026? > Do you need a visa for Sri Lanka in 2026: the online ETA travel authorization, the fee, 30 days with double entry, and why visa on arrival was scrapped. - URL: https://langandtrip.com.ua/en/article/viza-na-shri-lanku-2026/ - Language: en - Published: 2026-07-15 - Categories: Travel, Holidays, Beaches, Hotels, Tours, Sri Lanka --- Yes, Ukrainians do need a **Sri Lanka visa**, but it is not a paper sticker from an embassy. It is an electronic travel authorization (ETA) that you arrange online in just a few minutes. It gives you **30 days of stay** with the right to enter twice. The big change to know about: since 15 October 2025 you must hold the authorization before you fly, because the familiar visa on arrival has been scrapped. ## What Visa You Need for Sri Lanka in 2026 For a tourist trip there is one working option: the ETA (Electronic Travel Authorization). It is not a separate stamp in your passport but an electronic record linked to your international passport. You apply online, get a confirmation by email, and show it together with your passport at the border. A standard tourist ETA gives you up to 30 days from the date of your first entry and allows two entries within that period. That second entry is handy if you plan to slip away, say, for a few days to the Maldives and come back: there is no need to apply again. ## How Much a Sri Lanka Visa Costs and Whether It Can Be Free From May 2026 Sri Lanka made the tourist ETA free for citizens of 40 countries. That list includes, among others, the United States, Britain, most of the EU, and also Russia and Belarus. **Ukraine is not among those 40 countries**, so Ukrainians pay the standard fee. The size of the fee varies by source: some quote 35 US dollars, while updated figures for 2026 name 50 dollars for a double-entry tourist authorization. The spread is noticeable, so the only honest advice is this: **check the current amount on the official eta.gov.lk portal right before you apply**. Payment is made by card online. Authorizations for children under 12 are traditionally issued without a fee, but that is also worth double-checking on the portal. ![How much a Sri Lanka visa costs and whether it can be free](/storage/image/new/viza-na-shri-lanku-2026-1.jpg) ## Why Visa on Arrival Is Gone This is the most common trap. For years Sri Lanka let travelers in with a visa on arrival: you landed, paid at the counter, got your stamp. Since 15 October 2025 that option has been removed for tourists, and now the ETA must be arranged **before you board your flight**. Without a confirmed authorization the airline may refuse to let you on board at the departure airport. Common mistakeWhat to do insteadCounting on a visa on arrivalArrange the ETA online in advance: on arrival has been scrapped for touristsAssuming entry is free for UkrainiansThe 40 visa-free countries do not include Ukraine, so the fee must be paidApplying through dubious middleman sitesSubmit your application only on the official eta.gov.lkFlying with a passport that expires in 3 to 4 monthsYour passport must be valid for at least 6 months from entryPlanning to live half a year on repeated extensionsSri Lanka tightened long stays back in 2024, so plan for tourism![Why visa on arrival is gone](/storage/image/new/viza-na-shri-lanku-2026-2.jpg) ## How to Apply for the ETA Step by Step The process is simple and takes about ten minutes. Here is the order: 1. Go to the official portal **eta.gov.lk** and choose the tourist ETA. 2. Fill in the form: passport details, travel dates, the address of your first hotel. 3. Pay the fee by card and wait for the confirmation by email. It usually takes anywhere from a few hours to 48 hours. 4. Print or save the confirmation: you show it at the border together with your passport. At passport control you may be asked for a return ticket and proof of accommodation, and sometimes about having enough funds for the trip. Keep these handy, though checks are done selectively. ## How Long You Can Stay and How to Extend the Visa The base period is 30 days. If you want to stay longer, the authorization is extended at the Department of Immigration and Emigration in Colombo: you file an application, pay a separate fee, and receive extra days. Step by step you can stretch your stay to several months, but the amounts and conditions for extensions change, so confirm them on the spot. Here comes an honest caveat. In 2024 Sri Lanka shut down the scheme by which Russians and Ukrainians lived on the island for years, endlessly extending a tourist authorization. So the ETA is strictly about travel, not relocation: plans to move over and live on rolling extensions no longer work on the island. ![How long you can stay and how to extend the visa](/storage/image/new/viza-na-shri-lanku-2026-3.jpg) ## What to Do Before You Fly If you are heading out for a classic two or three week holiday, arrange your **Sri Lanka visa** as an ETA a few days before departure and print the confirmation. If you are building a longer route across the island with extensions built in, first check the latest extension rules on eta.gov.lk. Either way, make sure your passport has 6 months of validity and verify the current fee for 2026, because visa conditions here have changed more than once over the past couple of years.