283 new diplomatic passports issued

Some 423,066 new passports have been issued within the first nine months of this year by the Department of Immigration and Emigration, statistics revealed.

Accordingly, 132,705 new passports were issued to Middle Eastern countries while 269,647 new passports were issued to other countries during the same period.

Some 283 new diplomatic passports were also issued during the first nine months of the year. Further, the department had made amendments to 54,761 passports.

It was also revealed that 64,698 foreigners were issued with new Sri Lankan visas during this period. (Chamara Sampath)