Dept. of Immigration face uphill task to meet demand to issue passports

Passports will not be issued for every application that is received at the department on a daily basis, as there is an unusual demand for passports from the end of April, the Immigration and Emigration Department said.

They said the maximum number of passports that could be issued under one-day service is 2500.

Meanwhile, the Department's Deputy Controller and Media Spokesperson Piyumi Bandara said some 288,645 people had processed their passports during the first five months of this year. She said there were 382, 506 passports had been issued during the last year (2021).

In the face of the economic crisis in the country, many people are seeking overseas jobs, and as a result, more and more people are thronging at the Dept's office everyday to obtain their travel document.

"52,278 passports were issued in January this year; 55,381 in February, 74 890 in March, 53,151 passports in April, and 52 945 in May. 

"As the requirement became extraordinarily higher, the officials at the department are finding it difficult to process passports," she said.

Therefore, she appealed  to the aspirants to visit the department after making a prior appointment.

Consequently, 1,500 passports could be issued daily, and the people who don't reserve date and time too are queuing at the department.

One-day passport issuing will only take place at the Immigration Department Head Office in Battaramulla. 

She said documents required to obtain a passport under normal service can be obtained at Matara, Kurunegala, Kandy and Vavuniya offices in addition to the head office, she said. (Chaturanga Samarawickrama)