The Department of Immigration and Emigration says the issuance of passports will be required to be restricted due to the limited availability of blank passports.
Issuing a statement, the department requested only applicants with immediate requirements to apply for passports.
The Immigration Department further said that new electronic passports are to be introduced, adding that a tender has been awarded to an international company for this service.
Stating that measures have been taken to obtain more blank passports and an order has been made as of now, the department said that the order of 750,000 passport books will be received only by the end of October.
Sri Lanka is currently facing several issues with regard to the issuance of passports, mainly due to the failure to implement a proper system and the shortage of passport books.
Earlier this month, Public Security Minister Tiran Alles acknowledged that the tender for the new passports had been delayed due to various reasons, causing the delay in issuing new passports
The minister said that although the daily requirement is to issue around 3,000 passports, only 900 are currently issued due to the current situation. (Newswire)
