Do Sri Lankan passport holders need a visa for Ecuador?

By Aditya Rawat · Destinations Writer, Tripmojo · Updated September 4, 2026 · Reviewed by Simran Raheja

Yes. Sri Lanka is one of the 45 nationalities on Ecuador’s Régimen Especial list, so a Sri Lankan passport does not get the arrival-desk welcome Ecuador is known for and the visa has to be arranged before you fly. The one to apply for is the temporary visitor tourist visa for 90 days, submitted online through the foreign ministry’s e-VISAS platform, and the piece that sets the calendar is a Police Clearance Certificate that has to be translated and legalised before the file will be looked at.

Quick facts

Visa required

Visa required: Yes, before travel
Why: Sri Lanka is one of 45 countries on Ecuador’s Régimen Especial list
Visa to apply for: Temporary visitor tourist visa, 90 days
Where: Online, on the foreign ministry’s e-VISAS platform
The hard requirement: Police Clearance Certificate, translated and legalised
Passport validity: At least six months

Entry requirements

A Sri Lankan passport valid for at least six months.
An original Police Clearance Certificate covering Sri Lanka, and an equivalent from anywhere else you have lived in the last five years, translated into Spanish and legalised. Ecuador counts it as valid for 180 days from the date of issue to your last entry, and asks for it only from applicants over 18.
Proof of lawful means of support under Ministerial Agreement No. 70 of 28 June 2024, with a travel itinerary and return tickets.
A colour photograph to specification: JPG, no more than one megabyte, 5 by 5 centimetres, white background, neutral expression or a natural smile, both eyes open.

On the list, and the clearance certificate leads the timeline

Ecuador’s foreign ministry publishes the list of nationalities that need a visa before arriving, and its services portal repeats the same 45 names as the Régimen Especial. Sri Lanka sits on both, so the visa is not something a Sri Lankan traveller can leave until the airport, however open Ecuador is to most passports.

The visa to apply for is the temporary visitor tourist visa for 90 days. The portal describes it as an authorisation for tourism and states that holders may not work. The application goes in only online through the ministry’s e-VISAS platform, and the visa is issued through an Ecuadorian mission abroad, so you start on the website and finish through a consulate.

The document that governs your timeline is the Police Clearance Certificate. Sri Lankans apply for it through the Sri Lanka Police eService and it is issued by Police Headquarters in Colombo; Ecuador then wants it translated into Spanish and legalised. The legalisation is the slow step, so start it first.

Good to know

The certificate is applied for online but authenticated the slow way, and it is the authentication that takes the time. Sri Lankans request the Police Clearance Certificate through the Sri Lanka Police eService, but because Sri Lanka is not in the Apostille Convention the finished certificate cannot be apostilled; it has to be attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Colombo and then consular-legalised for Ecuador. Plan for that chain rather than assuming an online request is the whole job.
The certificate is counted valid to your arrival, not your application, which is the detail that quietly wastes one. Ecuador treats the Police Clearance Certificate as valid for 180 days from issue to your last entry into the country, so one obtained early and paired with a slow legalisation and a later trip can expire against the journey. Count backwards from the date you plan to land in Quito.
If you have lived outside Sri Lanka in the last five years, the Sri Lankan certificate alone will not close the requirement. Ecuador asks for a criminal-record certificate from each country of residence over that period, so someone who worked in the Gulf needs that country’s certificate too, each translated and legalised. That parallel paperwork is the part travellers underestimate.
This visa is for tourism in the strict sense and the portal says so, describing the permission as being for tourism and prohibiting holders from carrying out work activities. A trip that includes anything resembling work, even short unpaid but organised engagements, needs a different application, and the line is written into the description of the visa itself.

Frequently asked questions

Do Sri Lankan citizens need a visa for Ecuador?

Yes. Ecuador publishes a list of 45 nationalities that must obtain a visa before arriving, its Régimen Especial, and Sri Lanka is on it. Most other nationalities are admitted without one.

Which visa should Sri Lankans apply for?

The temporary visitor tourist visa for 90 days, applied for online through the foreign ministry’s e-VISAS platform.

Do Sri Lankans need a police certificate for an Ecuador visa?

Yes, if you are over 18. Ecuador asks for an original Police Clearance Certificate, translated into Spanish and legalised, plus an equivalent from anywhere you have lived in the last five years.

Can a Sri Lankan police certificate be apostilled?

No. Sri Lanka is not a member of the Apostille Convention, so the certificate is attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and consular-legalised rather than apostilled.

Can Sri Lankans work in Ecuador on this visa?

No. The government portal describes the permission as being for tourism and states that holders are prohibited from carrying out work activities.

How long can Sri Lankans stay in Ecuador on this visa?

Up to 90 days. The visa is the temporary visitor tourist visa for 90 days, and it does not permit work.

Other passports for Ecuador

Sources

Every fact on this page was checked against the official sources below on 4 September 2026.

Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana del Ecuador, "Lista de países que deben presentar visa al ingresar al Ecuador": 45 nationalities are named as requiring a visa to enter Ecuador, and Sri Lanka is among them. Read 2026-09-04. https://www.cancilleria.gob.ec/2020/06/30/lista-de-paises-que-deben-presentar-visa-al-ingresar-al-ecuador/
Gobierno del Ecuador, gob.ec, "Concesión de visa de visitante temporal turista 90 días", MREMH: the 45 Régimen Especial countries include Sri Lanka; the visa authorises tourism and prohibits work; the application is made only online through the e-VISAS platform and the visa is issued through Ecuadorian missions abroad; requirements include a passport valid at least six months, a colour photograph to specification, an original criminal-record certificate from the country of origin or residence over the last five years translated and apostilled or legalised and valid 180 days from issue to last entry and required only of those over 18, proof of lawful means of support under Acuerdo Ministerial No. 70 of 28 June 2024, and a travel itinerary with return tickets. Read 2026-09-04. https://www.gob.ec/mremh/tramites/concesion-visa-visitante-temporal-turista-90-dias
HCCH, Apostille Section, status table: Sri Lanka is not a Contracting Party to the Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, so Sri Lankan public documents are authenticated by consular legalisation rather than apostille. Read 2026-09-04.
Sri Lanka Police: the Police Clearance Certificate is applied for through the Police eService and issued by Police Headquarters, Colombo. Read 2026-09-04.

Entry rules change without notice and the official source is always the authority. Confirm with the embassy or immigration portal before you book.

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