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150 people to get dual citizenship on Thursday
View(s):The dual citizenship facility for people of Sri Lankan origin with foreign citizenship will be available from nest Thursday after a gap of three years, Public Order Minister John Amaratunga said yesterday.
He said the first batch of 150 applicants from 400 applications would receive Sri Lanka citizenship on Thursday while interviews for the remaining applicants would be conducted in stages.
The applications will be processed by a committee headed by Emigration and Immigration Chief Nihal Ranasinghe and will include ministry secretaries and senior officials, he said.
Initially, the facility would be offered to applicants from countries such as Britain, Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland and France. But applicants from other countries would also be considered if they submitted the relevant official documents from the country where there were resident, the Minister said.
Those eligible to qualify for such a facility must be over the age of 55, possess academic qualifications ranging from a one year diploma or above, own immovable assets in Sri Lanka worth Rs. 2.5 million, and maintain a fixed deposit of Rs. 2.5 million or more in a local bank, a fixed deposit of US$ 25,000 for three years under NRFC/RFC/SFIDA accounts in a local bank or an investment of US$ 25,000 in Treasury Bonds (TB) or Security Investment Accounts (SIA), he added.
The spouse of an applicant or an unmarried child under the age of 21 is also eligible to apply for this facility.
He said the fee for the main applicant is Rs. 250,000, the spouse of an applicant Rs. 50,000 and unmarried children under the age of 22 Rs. 50,000.