ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka launched an online system to streamline the passport issuance on Wednesday (06), but physical appointments will be available only from December first week due to the high number of tokens already given, government officials said.
Despite President Anura Dissanayake’s promise to bring down 50,000 new passports and reduce long queues of passport applicants, the number of people standing outside the Department of Immigration and Emigration has yet to see a decline.
Though the government has urged people not to rush for passports unless urgent, government officials say thousands have been waiting in the queue from early morning hours even though majority of them are not going on a foreign visit in the near future.
The new online process will be launched to reduce the queues.
“A low supply compared to the demand has resulted many to gather near the department premises,” Nilusha Balasooriya, the Acting Controller General at the Department of Immigration and Emigration told reporters on Monday (04).
“We request the public to refrain from gathering near the state building from the 6th of November.”
“In the official website, the left corner mentions ‘Book an appointment for a passport’, which will then direct to the reservation portal,” she said.
However, when the Government Information Center was contacted on the 1919 hotline, an official said the latest possible appointment is available only from December 3.
Reservations can be made by clicking on the “Book an appointment for a passport” button featured on the official website and the system can currently facilitate up to 1,200 slots daily, she said.
“Please do not let a third party company or an individual take money for reservation purposes,” Balasooriya said.
The public can also get more information on obtaining a passport from the Department of Immigration and Emigration hotline on 1962. (Colombo/November 06/2024)