Sri Lanka
Submit your application at a visa centre for France in Sri Lanka
Visa applications submitted in Sri Lanka are examined by the French Embassy in Colombo ; only the Embassy is authorised to make decisions regarding visas.
Visa applicants can visit, upon appointment, the VFS Global Centre in Colombo to have their visa application processed.
The Embassy of France requires a minimum of three working days to process a visa application.
Applications shall be processed within 15 calendar days of the date of lodging of an admissible application.
- In individual cases, notably when further scrutiny is needed or in cases of representation, this period may be extended up to 30 calendar days.
- When additional documentation is needed ; the period may be extended up to 60 calendar days.
- However, if a passport is handed over with a complete application and supporting documents on Tuesday, for example, it might be collected on Friday ; if it is handed over on Wednesday, it might be collected on Monday.
VFS Global Centre in Colombo
Contact details
3rd floor,
No: 19, Dudley Senanayake Mawatha,
Brown’s Capital Building,
Colombo 08
Sri Lanka
Call center
+94 112 350 607
Website
Submitting applications
From now on, in order to offer a better quality to welcome the applicants and more flexibility in the process of submitting the visa applications, all diplomatic or service passport’s holders shall submit their applications at the premises of our partner VFS. The applicant will be received in the Premium Lounge, without appointment, from 9.30 to 12.00 am, from Monday to Friday.
(appointment only)
| Monday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Tuesday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Wednesday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Thursday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Friday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
OFII family reunion long stay visa applications : without appointment, on Monday from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m.
Collecting passports
(without appointment)
| Monday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Tuesday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Wednesday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Thursday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Friday | 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
French Embassy in Colombo
Contact details
89 Rosmead Place
00700 Colombo 07
Sri Lanka
Call center
+94 11 2 63 94 00 / Fax +94 11 2 63 94 02
Website
Submitting applications
(appointment only)
| Monday | 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. |
| Tuesday | 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. |
| Wednesday | 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. |
| Thursday | 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. |
| Friday | 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
Collecting passports
NA
Appointment information
The usual times for making appointments varies according to the number of visitors and seasons. Users are therefore required to anticipate in order to obtain their appointment at least 15 days before the departure date and a maximum of 6 months before the scheduled departure date for a short stay visa.
When you have all the documents required for your application, you can make an appointment on the VFS website .
This allows you to either :
Schedule an appointment at the Visa Application Centre, from Monday to Friday 8 am - 2 pm ;
Schedule an appointment at the French Embassy, only on Tuesday (upon remaining availabilities and except if the considering Tuesday is a holiday). The deadline to schedule an appointment for the coming Tuesday is Monday, 12:00.
Travel agencies / group applicants (minimum 10 pax) are requested to send the details of the group, including but not limited to: the applicants name, passport number, expiry date, travel dates (onward and return), destination and purpose of the journey, in a tabular format along with the group coordinator name and contact details to at least 30 working days before the group departure date. VFS will co-ordinate and facilitate for group submission of visa applications at the VAC.
- A valid passport with at least two blank pages. Your passport’s expiry date must be at least three months after the expiry date of the requested visa ;
- The appointment conformation letter (printed out) ;
- The file containing all the required documents presented in the same order as on the list of required documents ;
- Payment to cover the cost of the visa and the processing fees.
It is advised to arrive no more than 10 minutes prior to the appointment.
NB : If your visa application is incomplete (i.e. missing documents), you may choose not to submit your application until you have all the required documents and come back to the Centre at a later date after making a new appointment. You will not have to pay any processing fees if you decide not to submit your application at this time. However, if you do decide to submit your incomplete application, you will be asked to sign a document indicating that your application is incomplete and that certain documents are missing.
Submitting a complete application does not guarantee that the consular authorities will grant you a visa.
All visas issued by France are biometric visas.
Applicants who are over 12 years of age are required to appear in person at the time of their first application. The following biometric identifiers are collected: a photograph, scanned or taken at the time of the application, and 10 fingerprints, taken flat and digitized.
However, it is possible to retrieve your biometric data if a previous biometric Schengen visa has been issued to you less than 59 months ago. In that case, application can be submitted by a third-party with a signed authorization letter.
Children under 12 years of age: children under 12 years of age are not required to provide the biometric data, short stay Schengen visa application may be submitted by the child’s parent/legal guardian. The ISO/IEC format photograph (pdf) of the child will be scanned.
Closed on Saturdays and Sundays.
Public holidays in 2019 :
Wednesday January 1: New Year's Day
Wednesday January 15: Tamil Thai Pongal Day
Tuesday February 4: Sri Lankan National Day
Monday April 13: Easter Monday and Sinhalese and Tamil New Years
Friday May 1: Labor Day
Thursday May 7: Vesak
Friday May 8: May 8 (1945 victory)
Monday May 25: Id-Ul-Fitr / Ramadan
Tuesday July 14: National holiday
Friday October 30: Milad-Un-Nabi
Friday December 25: Christmas
Following a request from the French consular authorities:
- Only visa applicants are authorised to enter the Visa Application Centre. No companion is permitted to enter unless express prior authorisation has been obtained by emailing our helpline.
- Every person entering the VFS Visa Application Centre will be subject to security checks.
For security reasons, the following items cannot be brought into the Centre:
- Any battery-powered device or electronic device such as a camera, video camera, MP3 player, CD player, cassette player (or any other portable music player), computer or tablet;
- Any bag except a plastic bag containing the required application documents or a small hand bag;
- Any sealed package or envelope;
- Any inflammable items e.g. lighter, matches. etc.
- Any sharp objects e.g. knife, scissors. etc.
- Any weapons or explosives.
The above list is not exhaustive. Other items may also be prohibited by the Centre’s security officers.
The Visa Application Centre cannot store/keep any prohibited items. Consequently, visa applicants must make sure they comply with the rules before visiting the Centre.
Tracking your application
After your appointment and submitting your application in the Centre, you can track the progress of your application on the VFS website.
Collecting your passport
Only visa applicants can collect their visas. A representative may also retrieve the passport on their behalf provided that he/she brings :
- The receipt ;
- A copy of the applicant ID card ;
- The original and a copy of his/her own ID card ;
- An authorization letter signed by the applicant mentioning name and ID card number of the person who will collect the passport on his/her behalf.
If you want the envelope containing your passport (and any other documents) to be returned to you by the consular authorities by post, please indicate that you want to use the courier service when you submit your application.
Particular situations
Visa applications submitted in Sri Lanka are examined by the French Embassy in Colombo.
People residing in Sri Lanka or in Maldives, who want to travel to France as a sole or main destination, must apply for their visa through VFS Global, the service provider in charge of collecting visa applications under the authority of the French Embassy in Colombo.
The French Embassy in Sri Lanka and Maldives issues short-stay visas on behalf of two countries of the Schengen area: Spain, Portugal ans Szech Republic. Currently, the issuance of visas for this destination is suspended.
France also represents Monaco in Sri Lanka and Maldives.
Some applicants residing in the Maldives may be able to collect their passport directly at the French Embassy the day after they submitted their application (4 pm Monday to Thursday & 12 pm on Friday). The availability of the passport depends on several criteria and technical matters and cannot be guaranteed.
Diplomatic passport holders are exempted of airport transit visa but not of shortstay Schengen visa if they want to exit the airport.
Visas issued to official and diplomatic passport holders are free of charge.
Holders of diplomatic/official passports travelling for official or private purpose are entitled to lodge their visa application directly to the embassy. It is advisable to schedule an appointment by sending an email.
For further information :
- VFS Global website
- email (inquiries)
The following categories of applicants :
- Spouses of a French citizen ;
- Scientists ;
- French or foreign government grant holders (students) ;
- Foreigners invited by an international organization having its headquarters in France (ordinary passport holders).
Will benefit from exemption of VFS service fees.
Fees
Table of visa processing fees (pdf)
VFS fees
The basic service fees are fixed in Euros but are paid in the local currency. It costs 23.61 € per submitted application, payable in cash in Sri Lanka rupees according to the current exchange rate. This fee will not be reimbursed unless the applicant decides not to submit their application before the biometric data is collected.
Optional paid-for services are also available for visa applications. The processing fees must be paid in cash at the Visa Application Centre when you submit your application. Please ensure that you have the necessary amount before visiting the Centre.
Help
If you have any problem with your visa application, please contact VFS Global for assistance.
Telephone: +94 115 160 308
At the French Embassy in Sri Lanka:
For any specific question concerning visas, please contact the French Embassy