Colombo (News 1st): Cabinet approval has been given to grant a free on-arrival visa for tourists, and have expanded the program from 39 countries to 45 in an attempt to recover faster from the April 21 attacks. The cabinet had earlier given the approval to start the free on-arrival visa on May 01, but the program was halted due to security concerns after the April 21 attacks.

New countries have also been added to the list in a new cabinet memorandum presented by Minister of Tourism Development, Wildlife and Christian Religious Affairs, John Amaratunga. The government is planning to launch an Rs. 1 billion public relations and promotions campaign and has also taken steps to reduce taxes and fees at the airport to allow reduction of airfares to Sri Lanka.

The countries are;

1. Australia
2. Austria
3. Belgium
4. Bulgaria
5.  Cambodia
6. Canada
7. China
8. Croatia
9. Cyprus
10. Czech Republic
11. Denmark
12. Estonia
13. Finland
14. France
15. Germany
16. Greece
17. Hungary
18.  Iceland
19. India
20. Ireland
21. Italy
22. Japan
23. Latvia
24. Lithuania
25. Luxembourg
26. Malta
27. Malaysia
28. Netherlands
29. Norway
30. New Zealand
31. Philippines
32. Poland
33. Portugal
34. Romania
35. Russia
36. Singapore
37. Slovak Republic
38. Slovenia
39. South Korea
40. Spain
41. Sweden
42. Switzerland
43. Thailand
44. United Kingdom
45. United States of America

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