Malaysia eases visa rules for Lanka

Malaysia will relax visa rules for travellers from Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan in an effort to boost tourism, an official said Tuesday.

Under the new rules, visitors from the four countries can visit the Southeast Asian nation without a visa while transiting to another country, Tourism Malaysia Director General Mirza Mohammad Taiyab told AFP.

"It will be easier for them to holiday in Malaysia with this transit pass. We hope there won't be any abuse," Mirza said, adding that the government had yet to decide how long visitors would be allowed to stay. Malaysia in 2006 introduced a visa-on-arrival scheme for visitors from 24 countries to promote tourism.

At present visitors from the four countries need to obtain a visa before entering Malaysia, after the government in 2008 scrapped a tourist-friendly visa program for them in a bid to curb illegal immigration. AFP