The Defence Ministry said today it would introduce a system of dual citizenship which is applicable to citizens of 10 countries after being interviewed.



Civil Defence and Development Additional Secretary Damayanthi Jayaratne said the system would allow Sri Lankans to obtain dual citizenship without much hassle.



According to the previous system, Sri Lankans living abroad with permanent residency for five years were eligible to apply for dual citizenship.



“The latest system will allow Sri Lankans to obtain dual citizenship after they are interviewed by a Cabinet-appointed panel,” she said.   



Sri Lankans living in the US, Canada, Switzerland, France, Germany, New Zealand, Australia, Norway, Sweden and Italy will be permitted to request for dual citizenship in this category.



“Because of numerous requests received from Sri Lankans living abroad to settle here to launch business ventures, President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa have instructed that a hassle-free be implemented,” Ms. Jayaratne said.  



The granting of dual citizenship was suspended by the government two years ago. Since then the authorities continued to receive a spate of inquiries about the status of the facility. The Cabinet earlier granted approval for the amendment of the relevant laws.(DS &LP )