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Lankan mission fixes deadline for outpasses

Bandula Somasiri, Sri Lankan Consul General in Dubai told Khaleej Times that the amnesty seekers will have to apply to the Consulate for their outpasses before April 20, after which, they will not entertain any outpass requests.

"The deadline announced by the Consulate is an initiative to facilitate the last minute rush from amnesty seekers, thronging the mission's office with requests for outpasses."

"We will prefer, if the amnesty seekers start approaching us early for outpass, enabling them to complete their travel arrangements before the lapse of the four-month amnesty on April 30," he said, explaining that after the issue of temporary outpasses by the Consulate, it takes around one week for the amnesty seeker to get his exit clearance from the Dubai authorities thereafter allowing him to make his travel arrangements to leave the country.

He said the Consulate has todate issued around 1,200 outpasses and handed over some 150 passports received from the immigration authorities in Dubai and the Northern Emirates.

"On an average, we are issuing around 50 outpasses daily since the onset of March. But, we expect to receive between 3,000 to 4,000 outpass requests from amnesty seekers until the end of the amnesty," he disclosed.

As a result, dealing with such large numbers towards the end of the amnesty will only lead to delays in securing the exit pass to leave the country in time, he said and urged the Sri Lankan amnesty seekers to adhere to the deadline set by the Consulate.

Meanwhile, those who have been issued their exit passes should leave the country within the specified period, failure of which may lead to strict action by the authorities involving payment of fines at the airport.

Besides, the Consulate will not entertain requests from violators to re-issue another outpass, he stresed.

Mr Somasiri said, the authorities have promised to sort out the list of passports in their custody by early next week.

"We hope to receive around 3,000 passports of violators or those lost in the UAE, which will be then handed over to the claimants soon enabling them to leave the country without going through the formalities of seeking exit permits."

He clarified that the 3,000 passports to be received from the Immigration authorities may not all be of amnesty seekers. Many may have already left the country before the declaration of amnesty.

The Consul General also clarified that the Sri Lankan amnesty seeker is not bound to travel to Sri Lanka by Sri Lankan airlines only.

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