Easy visas for Lankan businessmen

Riyadh : Sri Lankan businessmen wishing to visit Saudi Arabia will now be able to secure visas without the need for a letter from a local sponsor in the Kingdom, a development that the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry say will help promote international trade.

In a circular dated April 27, the Foreign Affairs Ministry directed Saudi embassies to issue visas to foreign businessmen provided they are satisfied that they are genuine businessmen and coming to the Kingdom for business. The circular adds that businessmen are not required to present invitations from local Saudi firms and the Kingdom's Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

"We have intimated this message to all foreign missions in the Kingdom so they can inform their respective Governments accordingly," said Fahad S. Al-Sultan, Secretary-General of the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry, adding the news was good for international trade.

Riyadh Al-Kheneini, deputy chief of mission at the Saudi Embassy in Colombo, told the Daily News that his department issues visas to prominent Lankan businessmen within 24 hours. He added that the mission insists on sponsor letters from Saudi businesses if applicants are unable to satisfactorily establish their credentials.

Commercial Secretary of the Sri Lankan Embassy Yasantha De Silva, said this will boost Saudi- Sri Lanka bilateral trade. A spokesman from the commercial section of a European embassy told Arab News that business visits to the Kingdom will only start after September.

"During the summer, businessmen rarely visit the Kingdom unless they have specific assignments," he added. During a visit to the Kingdom in February, Alderman David Lewis, the lord mayor of the City of London, had requested Saudi authorities to ease visa regulations for British businessmen to promote bilateral trade. "We want you to have an easy visa system to enable our businessmen to visit your country as and when needed," the lord mayor had said.