Sri Lankan passport holders will require visas from September 15 under Bangkok’s revised entry rules
Sri Lankan passport holders will lose visa-exempt entry to Thailand from September 15 following changes to Bangkok’s immigration arrangements.
Thailand’s revised rules were published in its Royal Gazette on August 31 after a review of visa exemptions which considered national security, tourism, economic interests and reciprocity.
Sri Lankans travelling after September 15 will have to obtain visas in advance, although Thailand’s electronic visa system remains available.
Travellers who enter before the new rules take effect may remain for the period already granted by Thai immigration authorities.
For the individual Sri Lankan traveller the immediate consequence is relatively straightforward: another application, another procedure and potentially additional cost.
For Sri Lanka there is a broader diplomatic question.
Visa-free access is not simply a convenience for holidaymakers.
It facilitates business travel, investment, education, professional exchanges and family connections and is one of the practical ways in which relations between countries affect ordinary citizens.
Thailand is entirely entitled to determine who enters its territory and on what terms.
But where reciprocity formed part of the review, Colombo should establish whether Sri Lanka’s own visa arrangements contributed to Thailand’s decision and whether there is a route towards restoring visa-free access.
A passport is a remarkably small document.
The number of doors it opens says something considerably larger about a country’s relationship with the world.
Be that as it may, when another door becomes harder for the Sri Lankan passport to open, Colombo should at least find out why.
