Travel relaxation reversed over fresh COVID-19 alert

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka has re-imposed a rule requiring prior registration of expatriate nationals who want to return, after a highly transmissible new coronavirus strain was found in the UK and some other countries, Economy Next reported.

“In the wake of the discovery of a fast spreading new strain of Coronavirus in certain countries, the government of Sri Lanka has decided to continue with the existing procedure of obtaining prior approval from the Foreign Ministry and the Civil Aviation Authority for all inbound travelers to Sri Lanka,” the Foreign Ministry said in the Economy Next report.

“The revised guidelines on repatriation will be issued once the situation has been reappraised.”

Sri Lanka has also halted passengers on flights from the UK.

Earlier in December Sri Lanka’s Civil Aviation Authority said rules on inbound travelers would be relaxed from Dec. 26.

Expatriate Sri Lankans and dual citizens who were willing to pay for quarantine were allowed to come on any commercial flight provided they had booked quarantine at any one of the designated hotels.