Umrah visa for Sri Lankans

The tourist eVisa is closed to Sri Lankans

The official Saudi eVisa portal publishes a list of 66 eligible countries. Sri Lanka does not appear on it. The Asian countries that do appear are Azerbaijan, Brunei, China including Hong Kong and Macau, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Maldives, Singapore, South Korea, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkey and Uzbekistan.

Where the tourist eVisa is available it does permit Umrah, and it runs for a year with up to 90 days in the country. None of that is available on a Sri Lankan passport. The portal's own instruction to nationalities not on the list is to contact the nearest Saudi Arabia embassy.

How the Umrah visa works now

The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah changed the Umrah visa on 20 July 2026. These are the current terms, from the Saudi Press Agency.

• It is a multiple-entry visa, valid 365 days from the date of issuance.
• Multiple entries are allowed, with a cumulative stay of up to 90 days.
• Each visit requires purchasing a service package from an approved provider on the Nusuk platform, with the package duration not exceeding the days remaining on the visa.
• Entry is also contingent on issuing an Umrah permit through the Nusuk application before arrival.
• The visa is deactivated after each departure and reactivated once the requirements for the next visit are met.
• It is not activated during the Hajj season, from 1 Dhul Qi'dah to 13 Dhul Hijjah.

Check your agent against the Saudi list

Nusuk Masar is the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah's business platform, registered with the Saudi Digital Government Authority under number 20230103200. It runs a free public lookup called "Inquiry About Qualified External Agents", which shows the agents authorised to provide Umrah services worldwide, with their contact details.

It costs nothing, needs no documents, and returns a result immediately. The published steps are: open Nusuk Masar, go to Services, then Umrah services, then Inquiry About Qualified External Agents, enter Country and City, and search.

The same platform also offers "Inquiry About Licensed Umrah Companies" and "Inquiry About Mutamer Insurance Certificate". If you are comparing operators, this is the one check you can make yourself without taking anyone's word for it.

Passport and documents

Passports must be valid for at least 6 months before the date of arrival in the Kingdom. That threshold is stated in the official Nusuk Umrah platform user manual, and again in the eVisa terms for that visa class.

The documents uploaded at registration, from the same manual, are:

• Passport — PNG or JPG, up to 7 MB.
• Personal photo — PNG or JPG, a clear image, white background, formal attire, up to 180 KB.
• Proof of residence — if you do not have a residence permit, an employment contract, driver's licence, lease agreement, property ownership document, work visa or a contract bank statement.

The application also collects contact details, occupation, arrival details, travel history and health conditions, and asks directly whether the required vaccinations have been taken.

The health certificate you must have

The Saudi Ministry of Health's requirements for Umrah travellers for 1447H (2026) state that all individuals intending to perform Umrah, from all countries, are required to be vaccinated against meningococcal disease.

• Quadrivalent (ACYW) or pentavalent (ACYWX) conjugate vaccine — received within the last 5 years and at least 10 days before arrival.
• Quadrivalent (ACYW) polysaccharide vaccine — received within the last 3 years and at least 10 days before arrival.

Where to get it in Sri Lanka

The Quarantine Unit of the Ministry of Health states that meningococcal vaccination is required for all persons over 2 years travelling to Makkah for Hajj and Umrah, at least 10 days before arrival.

What Sri Lankans do not need

• Polio. Sri Lanka appears on none of the Saudi Ministry of Health's polio tables. No dose is required or advised for a traveller from Sri Lanka.
• Yellow fever. The requirement covers listed African and South American countries. Sri Lanka is not among them.
• Cholera certificate. It applies to arrivals from Yemen and Sudan only.

COVID-19 is required only for specific groups: people over 65, pregnant women, and those with chronic heart, respiratory, kidney, neurological or blood conditions, immunodeficiency or cancer. For everyone else it is a recommendation. Seasonal influenza vaccination is advised, not required. If you have a chronic condition, carry documentation of it and enough medication in its original packaging.

Women travelling without a mahram

On 11 October 2022 the Saudi Minister of Hajj and Umrah, Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, announced that "a woman can come to the kingdom to perform Umrah without a mahram." The decision applies worldwide, to both Hajj and Umrah. A Ministry adviser put it as: "it is now permissible for a woman to perform Hajj or Umrah without a mahram, accompanied by trustworthy women or secure company."

Nusuk permits, including Rawdah

An Umrah permit must be issued through the Nusuk application before arrival. That is a Ministry of Hajj and Umrah requirement, not an optional extra. Saudi Arabia states the same for religious visitors generally: appointments for Umrah or Ziyarah are scheduled through Nusuk before visiting Makkah or Madinah.

The Rawdah Sharif permit is a separate permit. The Saudi national portal lists it as a standalone service, "Permit to visit Al-Rawdah Al-Sharifiyah", provided entirely online. The published steps are: in the Nusuk app, select the Rawdah section from the home page, choose the Rawdah Prayer Permit Service for men or for women, and select the date and time. Nusuk's own Umrah packages list "Rawdah Noble Sanctuary Booking" as a distinct package component, which confirms it is booked separately.

What the visa costs

The Saudi side charges a visa and insurance cost that your operator pays as part of your package. Saudi Arabia does not publish a single fixed figure, so we do not quote one. Your written quotation will show what you pay.

Nusuk Umrah itself charges no registration fee at present, though the Ministry reserves the right to impose one. Refunds through the platform carry a 3% processing fee excluding tax and may take up to 45 business days.

For what the whole trip costs in rupees, see what Umrah costs from Sri Lanka.

The rules attached to the visa

These are quoted from the official Nusuk Umrah Terms of Use.

• "Users wishing to perform Umrah and Ziyarah must obtain Umrah visas in advance."
• "If you overstay your Umrah visa, you may face a large fine, be jailed, and/or deported. You may also be banned from returning to Saudi Arabia in the future."
• "It is not permitted to work in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on a Umrah visa."
• "Saudi Arabia uses the Islamic calendar for all official matters. Make sure you know when your visa expires."

That last line matters more than it looks. Your visa expiry is counted on the Hijri calendar, not the Gregorian one. Our Islamic calendar page shows today's Hijri date and the key dates ahead.

The Saudi Embassy in Colombo

The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Colombo publishes no Umrah visa guidance on its website. Its only visa-related element is a "KSA Visa" tile linking to ksavisa.sa. It is not the place to start an Umrah application.