Overseas Lankans can now obtain personal certificates online

Under the digitalisation programme initiated by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, a new digital platform was launched yesterday (06) by Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath allowing Sri Lankans abroad to quickly obtain birth, marriage, and death certificates through the respective embassies without any delays.

This website, operated by the Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment, and Tourism Ministry, was inaugurated by Minister Herath. The pilot project is being implemented for seven Sri Lankan missions overseas including Japan, Qatar, Kuwait, Milan, Toronto, Melbourne, and Dubai. The project aims to cover all embassies in the future.

Attending the event Minister Herath stated, “This opportunity for Sri Lankans abroad is the result of the dedicated efforts of the officials at the Presidential Secretariat, led by Senior Additional Secretary Roshan Gamage, and the Registrar General’s Department over the past two months.”

He further said, “Even though officials could have implemented this earlier, they lacked the necessary leadership. However, with the new political leadership, the officials managed to make it a reality within two months. This is the first successful initiative under the President’s digitalisation concept.

“This initiative is a significant service to the country and its economy. For a fee of around $22, Sri Lankans abroad can obtain these documents from any country. We believe we can further develop this and provide all services.

“Currently, there is a challenge with passport issues due to previous wrong decisions. We acknowledge the difficulties people still face. Therefore, we have decided to go for a tender for new passport printing. Through this, we aim to quickly obtain passport quantities and provide the same technology for renewing and obtaining new passports,” the Minister added. The event was attended by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment Arun Hemachandra, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism Ministry Secretary Aruni Ranaraja, Registrar General W.R.N.S. Wijesinghe, Senior Additional Secretary (Administration and Diplomatic Affairs) G.G.S.C. Roshan, and other high-ranking officials from the Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment, and Tourism Ministry.

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