I’m planning a vacation to Sri Lanka at the end of December and need advice on applying for the Digital Tourist Visa (DTV) in Colombo. Could someone share insights on the process? Specifically:

1. What documents do I need to provide?

2. Do I need to book an appointment, or is it a walk-in process?

Any additional tips or recent experiences would be greatly appreciated!

Here is my story on how I applied for DTV through Royal Thai Embassy in Colombo (Sri Lanka) : [members only]

This is how I applied for Thailand Destination Visa (DTV) From Sri Lanka under Workcation category: Refer [members only] for more info.

I’m a Sri Lankan living in Chiang Mai. I got an ED visa last year, which I can use until this December. I wanted to apply for the DTV soon, so I came back to Sri Lanka on 31st October. I gathered the following documents and submitted them on the eVisa portal.

Financial Proof:

• Bank balance confirmation letter: Final balance as of 3rd November.

• Pay slips: Last 6 months.

• Bank statements (salary account): Last 6 months.

• Bank statements (savings account): I only had the 500,000 THB+ balance for the last 2 months. There was no money there before.

Work Profile:

• I wrote a cover letter about my situation (I’m a software developer working remotely for a foreign company, and I’ve been to other Southeast Asian countries as a digital nomad).

• Attached my professional agreement letter with my employer and included their contact emails for verification if needed.

Payment:

• The fee is 120,000 LKR, equivalent to 14,000 THB. (Not sure why it’s higher than usual.)

Timeline:

• Application Submission: 5th Nov, 6:30 p.m. (IST)

• Document Request: Received email on 6th Nov, 3:30 p.m., asking to upload all pages of my passport.

• Passport Upload: Uploaded on 6th Nov, 11:30 p.m. (Creating a PDF under 3MB while retaining image quality for 33 images was tricky.)

• Interview Request: Received email on 7th Nov, 11:00 a.m., asking to visit the Royal Thai Embassy in Colombo for an interview on 8th Nov, 10:00 a.m.

• Interview: I went with hardcopies of all my documents (bank statements, offer letter, etc.). (It was a casual conversation — I think they just wanted to confirm I was in the country.)

• Visa Approval: Received on 8th Nov, 11:30 a.m.

Interview Summary:

There was no one else at the embassy. The officer asked me why I wanted this visa. I explained that I’m a digital nomad and have been traveling in Southeast Asia for the past few years. I mentioned I’d wanted this visa since it was announced.

• He asked how long I’d been in Thailand; I said 15 months on a student visa.

• He asked what I was doing there, and I explained I was learning Thai and living there.

• He asked about where I stayed, and I said mostly in Chiang Mai, though I’d visited the south as well.

• He reminded me I’m not allowed to earn money in Thailand, to which I replied that I understood.

• He asked if I had any family there, and I said no.

He took all the hardcopies and informed me that I’d receive the result via email.

Everything was pretty fast, with no major issues.

#srilanka #colombo #dtv

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The Philippines looks to be the best option for long stay, no tax unless earning in country plus increases to UK state pension whilst in country.

Cambodia offers retirement long stay, no UK pension increases, not sure on tax yet, not resident under 180 days.

Vietnam only up to 90 days, no pension increase. Hope they extend visas going forward one day. Malaysia similar on 90 days.

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