The sudden breakdown in the computer system of the Department of Immigration and Emigration that occurred this morning has been restored, officials confirmed.

Department spokesman Mahesh Karunadasa said the system, which had experienced a technical fault earlier in the day, has now returned to normal operations.

The disruption had temporarily affected the issuance of foreign passports during the morning hours, causing delays for applicants. 

Authorities assured that services are functioning smoothly again following the restoration. (Newswire)

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The Department of Immigration and Emigration has announced that the computer system fault, which resulted in the suspension of the issuance of passports, has been rectified.

Passport applicants are advised to call the 1962 hotline or visit the department website before visiting the Department of Immigration Office. 

The issuance of passports was temporarily suspended due to a technical fault in the Immigration and Emigration Department’s system today.

The department earlier announced that the computer system fault will be swiftly restored and that the issuance of passports will resume from next Monday (16 Feb).

However, the Department of Immigration has now announced that the issuance of passports and visas has resumed. (Newswire)

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Two suspects have been arrested for the illegal possession of 83 passports belonging to other individuals.

According to the Police, the suspects were arrested following a raid conducted in the Horagolla area in Ganemulla yesterday. 

Two suspects, a 51-year-old man from Wattala and a 62-year-old woman from Ganemulla, were arrested following the raid. 

The Ganemulla Police is conducting further investigations. (Newswire)

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A proposal has been submitted to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to obtain support for digitizing the process by which Sri Lankans apply for foreign travel documents through Sri Lankan missions and offices abroad.

The project has been jointly proposed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment and the Minister of Public Security, and submitted to the IOM to expedite the procedure.

Accordingly, the IOM has agreed to provide the necessary funding to implement the project covering 20 Sri Lankan overseas missions/offices. 

The project includes supplying biometric capture centres and related equipment, facilitating online connectivity with the Department of Immigration and Emigration, developing integrated systems/software, and providing necessary technical assistance.

Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the joint proposal presented to implement the said project. (Newswire)

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An Assistant Controller of the Department of Immigration and Emigration has been arrested on charges of having issued three fake passports to underworld kingpin Mandinu Padmasiri alias ‘Kehelbaddara Padme’.

Police Spokesman SSP Buddhika Manatunga said the Immigration Department official was arrested by officers from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) today.

He further said he is accused of having provided the passports to ‘Kehelbaddara Padme’, who is accused of the murder of druglord Ganemulla Sanjeewa at a courthouse in Colombo in February this year.  

The Police Spokesman added that the arrest was made after it was revealed during an investigation into two suspects who were previously arrested on charges of forging passports for ‘Kehelbaddara Padme’, who is currently in Dubai. (Newswire)

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The Department of Immigration and Emigration has announced that passport services will be suspended/restricted for three days in view of the 2025 Local Government Elections. 

According to the department, the 24-hour service for one-day passport issuance will be suspended on 05, 06, and 07 May. 

The department further said that other services will be restricted during this period. 

The Local Government Election is scheduled for 06 May 2025. (Newswire)

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Two men have been arrested in connection with creating forged documents, including drivers’ licences, National Identity Cards, and passports, following a raid conducted on a brothel operated under the guise of an Ayurvedic Spa in Boralesgamuwa.

During the raid conducted on the brothel on Tuesday, the Police had found one female suspect with a forged National Identity Card (NIC). Interrogations of the woman had led to the arrest of a man who had aided in creating forged documents. 

Information from him led to the Police finding a place at Obeysekerapura in Rajagiriya, creating forged documents and the arrest of a man operating the place. During the raid, the Police had seized a laptop, a colour printer, and a scanner. 

According to the Police, the arrested suspects are aged 49 and 57 years, and a residents of Rajagiriya and Polgasowita. They have been remanded until 21 April 2025 after being produced before the Nugegoda Magistrate’s Court today. (Newswire)

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The 24-hour service for one-day passports at the Department of Immigration and Emigration in Battaramulla will be suspended for three days next week. 

According to the department, the passport service will be suspended on 15, 16, and 17 April 2025.

The department said, however, tokens for one-day services will be issued until 12.00 pm on the said days. (Newswire)

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The government has approved measures to employ additional staff to accelerate passport printing and reduce delays.

The move follows recommendations from a Cabinet-appointed committee addressing the ongoing passport shortage. Accordingly, a proposal to employ retired personnel of the Department of Immigration and Emigration on contract basis received Cabinet approval.

Cabinet Spokesman Minister Nalinda Jayathissa said the procurement process has begun to acquire 1.1 million “P” category chip-embedded passport booklets.

In order to eliminate issuance delays, the Department of Emigration and Immigration plans to operate 24/7 issuing 4,000 passports daily.

Accordingy, the proposal by the Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs to recruit retired department officers on a contract basis and reassign existing government officers with the approval of the Public Service Commission and the Ministry of Public Administration, has received approval. (Newswire)

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The government has announced a decision to procure 500,000 passports through an expedited tender process in response to the ongoing passport issuance crisis.

Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs Ananda Wijepala revealed this in Parliament today (Jan 23), while responding to a query posed by Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa.

“We have initiated the process to procure 500,000 passports through a fresh tender. By Monday, we expect this to be published in newspapers, paving the way to issue the tenders,” Minister Wijepala stated.

Addressing the delays in passport issuance, the Minister explained the timeline for obtaining new passports under the current system. “If someone books an online appointment today (Jan 23), the earliest available date for issuance is June 27. This reflects an approximate wait time of five months,” he noted.

However, for urgent cases, a dedicated committee has been established within the Immigration Department to evaluate and approve requests for same-day passport issuance, he said. This system is intended to cater to emergencies while alleviating delays in regular services. (Newswire)

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Minister of Public Security Ananda Wijepala says steps have been taken to issue 2500 passports per day. 

Speaking to Newswire, Minister Wijepala said, previously, only 1200 passports were issued per day. 

He further said a separate counter has been opened to obtain passports for anyone who requires to travel abroad urgently.

Minister Wijepala said applications submitted to that counter will be considered by a committee and steps will be taken to provide passports as soon as possible. (Newswire)

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Deputy Minister of Public Security Sunil Watagala has revealed about an individual who had deceived him and his ministry staff, eventually fleeing with 17 new passports. 

During an interview with local media, Deputy Minister Sunil Watagala said that the incident had occurred during his first official visit to his office at the ministry recently.

Deputy Minister Watagala said as he entered the ministry premises, an individual he assumed was a ministry staff had taken the lead to escort him to various departments of the ministry. 

He said, at the time, he assumed he was a ministry official, while the ministry staff had been informed by the man that he had been sent from the Presidential Secretariat to coordinate the Deputy Minister’s visit. 

“A tea party had been organised to mark the occasion, and the man was actively involved in arranging it. He also escorted me to visit various sections of the ministry, including areas related to passport preparation, claiming that no minister had ever toured those sections before,” Deputy Minister Watagala said.

The Deputy Minister said only the following day he had been informed by his team that this person had instructed ministry staff to provide voice clips to the media praising him as a good person and an excellent deputy minister, advising that this man was not suitable to be a staff member. 

Inquiries from Ministry officials had proven that the man was an outsider, with Deputy Minister Watagala saying it was later found that his team had removed the man from the premises due to his actions. 

The Deputy Minister of Public Security further said that, however, by then the man had left the ministry with 17 new passports, after claiming that the Deputy Minister had ordered the collection. 

Stating that the individual has been identified as Nishantha, Deputy Minister Watagala said he has instructed the Police to immediately apprehend the man. (Newswire)

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The online passport appointment system is now available to the public.

The public can now make prior reservations via the official web portal: https://eservices.immigration.gov.lk/MakeAppointments/

The service will be available to reserve a date for One day or Normal service for obtaining a Passport.

The new methodology has been implemented since today ( Nov 06) for the convenience of passport applicants registering to apply for passports.

Following are the instructions issued by the Department of Immigration and Emigration for passport applicants;

1. Accordingly a prior registration shall be made through the link http://www.immigration.gov.lk with effect from 06.11.2024 to apply for Sri Lankan Passports. Acceptance of applications of applicants who register since then, will be commenced from Wednesday, 04.12.2024.

2. Therefore, it is possible to submit passport applications in the sequence of dates obtained as per the existing methodology up to Tuesday, 03.12.2024.

3. New applicants/ those who already possess a passport/ those whose passports have been lost may register through the new methodology.

4. The methodology of prior registration is valid for both One Day Service and Normal Service.

5. Valid National Identity Card number and valid mobile phone number of the applicant are required for registration and the applicant shall bring the National Identity Card number for the submission of passport applications.

6. The National Identity Card number of the mother or father shall be entered when registering the children under 16 years of age to obtain Passports.

7. Having fulfilled the above requirements, you may register for One Day Service and Normal Service by visiting the website www.immigration.gov.lk and clicking on the icon “Book an appointment for a passport” keeping the photo receipt obtained from a relevant approved photo studio with you.

8. If your registration is successful, you will be notified via SMS of a date for submitting the application. It is mandatory to visit the place you selected (Head office and Regional offices of Matara, Kandy, Kurunegala and Vavuniya) before 12.00 noon on the date you have been reserved as per the relevant SMS accompanying the originals of the application and all related documents. If you are unable to attend on the date, you will lose your opportunity reserved and you shall re-register for another date.

9. You are kindly informed that you will not be able to obtain a Passport by visiting the Department without reserving a date and time. (Newswire)

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The Department of Immigration and Emigration has announced the introduction of a new online system to obtain passports, which will be effective from 06 November 2024. 

Addressing the media today, acting Controller General of Immigration and Emigration Nilusha Balasooriya said the public can make reservations to allocate a date to obtain passports using their National Identity Cards (NIC). 

Stating that the system has been introduced on the department’s official website, she said tokens will be issued through the system for people to pre-book their appointments to obtain passports.

“The portal for passport appointments can be found on the left side of the department’s official website, under the category ‘Register to apply for a passport’. Limited tokens will be issued each day allowing people to make prior reservations to obtain passports,” she explained. 

Nilusha Balasooriya further said the decision to implement the new online system from Wednesday has been taken after considering the people who have arrived from distant areas and are standing in a queue outside the department. 

With the launch of the new online system, she said that the public can apply for tokens to make reservations from 01 December 2024. 

For more details visit https://www.immigration.gov.lk/index_e.php. (Newswire)

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Long queues were reported at the Passport Office in Battaramulla today as well, despite Government Spokesman Minister Vijitha Herath having requested only those with urgent requirements to visit, due to the prevalent passport shortage.

Addressing the media yesterday, the minister said new passports are being received in batches and that a stock of 100,000 passports is expected in mid-November.

He also requested those only with urgent requirements to arrive at the Passport Office.

However, the public has criticised the minister’s request, stating they are at the Passport Office only because they have essential requirements.

Some also called out the authorities, stating that the failure to implement a proper system, even as of now, has resulted in chaos at the Passport Office. (Newswire)

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The government says the Cabinet has decided to call fresh tenders for the issuance of passports, without further exacerbating the current shortage.

Cabinet Spokesman Minister Vijitha Herath told the media today that the tender process will require a few months. 

He said, as such, the Cabinet has decided to call for fresh tenders as soon as possible so that it could be prepared to continue the issuance of new passports as and when the deal for the current 750,000 passports ends. 

“Under the current circumstances and as per the recent court order, the government has purchased 750,000 passports from a new company that was selected by the former government. Printing of the passports was granted to the old company that had previously supplied passports,” he said.

Minister Herath pointed out that the current order of 750,000 passports will only be sufficient for the next four to six months and that the passports are being issued in batches. 

He said therefore, as the ordered passport stock ends in the next few months and the tender process also takes a similar period, the Cabinet has approved the government’s decision to call for fresh tenders now. 

Minister Herath said that through this move the government hopes to avoid a further shortage of passports in the future. (Newswire)

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Long queues have been reported at the Passport Office due to the increase in demand following the government’s announcement of receiving new passport books, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Vijitha Herath said. 

Addressing the media today, Minister Herath said that Sri Lanka expects to receive more passports in batches in the future. 

More passports expected in November;

The government has commenced receiving new passport books in batches, with the first few arriving last week. 

Minister Vijitha Herath said that another 100,000 passports are expected to be received in mid-November.

He said with the order placed for 750,000 passport books, the government will be able to issue new passports over the next four to six months.

Passport issuance capacity;

The Government Spokesman said that currently only 1600 passports are being issued per day, at present.

Despite an original capacity of 3500 passports per day, he said due to the new passports being issued in batches, the Passport Office can only manage to issue 1600 passports per day. 

He further said that a stock of passports is kept separate to be issued for cabin crew members, forces personnel, and those requiring to travel for serious illnesses and deaths of family members.

Request to the public;

Minister Vijitha Herath assured that the government was taking every possible measure to address the passport shortage and continue the issuance of passports.

He urged only those with urgent requirements to obtain passports under the current circumstances. (Newswire)

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The government has commenced issuing passport books with a new unique design focussed on promoting Sri Lanka tourism.

The new passport books contain pages dedicated to images of various prominent tourist attractions in Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Vijitha Herath said that the passport issue has now been resolved with some 50,000 passports set to arrive in Sri Lanka this week.

“A batch of approximately 7,500 passports arrived in Sri Lanka on Saturday, and another batch of 42,000 passports is expected to arrive on Wednesday (23),” Minister Herath said, adding that the public will soon be able to obtain their passports. (Newswire)

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A stock of passports is expected to be received on Saturday, with the issuance of new passports commencing from Monday next week, the government announced today. 

Addressing the media, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Vijitha Herath said that the government had held a special Cabinet meeting to specifically resolve the passport crisis. 

“As we all know, the previous Cabinet had approved a tender to purchase 750,000 passports from a new supplier and they had been unable to deliver the stock of passports as promised. The former Cabinet had then decided to obtain normal passports from the same company, but a conflict had arisen as the previous supplier was entitled to printing as per their contract. The matter had been taken to court, where an agreement was made and permission granted for the purchase of 750,000 passports,” he said. 

Minister Herath further said the previous supplier had agreed in court to print the passports for a certain price, adding that based on the court order, a special Cabinet meeting was held during which it was decided to allow the previous supplier to provide the necessary passports in batches.

Stating that Cabinet approval has been granted for the purchase of passports, the minister said the issuance of new passports will commence from Monday and the government hopes to resolve the crisis shortly.

“The ordered 750,000 new passports will finish within a period of three or four months, after which we will be required to make fresh orders,” he said. 

Minister Vijitha Herath said, as such, the government has decided to introduce a new system under which tenders will be called for to obtain more passports and that the decision was taken at the recent Cabinet meeting. 

The Cabinet Spokesman also pointed out that as there was an interim injunction against the proposed E-passport system, the government could not proceed with the tender process.

He further said that measures in this regard can only be taken following the conclusion of the court case. (Newswire) 

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The Interim Order filed against the purchase of 750,000 normal passports from private companies has been amended, with the agreement of the petitioners, to allow the Immigration Controller General to handle the purchasing.

The amendment to the interim order was approved by the Court of Appeal when the petition filed in this regard was taken up for hearing yesterday.

As such, the amended interim order only permits the Immigration Controller General to purchase normal passports from private companies and not e-passports. 

The court was informed by the Attorney General’s Department that the Immigration Department currently possessed only 13,880 passport books and it was only sufficient for the next 30 days. 

The Attorney General’s Department further said that following this, the Immigration Department will not be able to issue any passports.

The court was also informed that the interim order against the purchase of new passport books had severely inconvenienced the public as it had affected the issuance of passports. 

The facts were presented when the writ petition filed by Epic Lanka (Pvt) Ltd and its Executive Chairman challenging the former Cabinet’s decision to purchase 750,000 N-Series passports was taken up for hearing yesterday. 

The former Cabinet had approved a proposal to purchase 750,000 N-Series passports from Thales DIS Finland OY and Just In Time Technologies (Pvt) Ltd as part of the initial procurement for the supply of five million e-Passports.

However, the decision was challenged by Epic Lanka (Pvt) Ltd alleging that it was a corrupt deal that violated the tender procedure.

In its petition, Epic Lanka (Pvt) Ltd pointed out that the deal bypassed the National Procurement Guidelines, was outside of the proper procurement procedure, and that the National Procurement Commission has also acknowledged in writing that the procurement had irregularities. (Newswire)

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