Sri Lanka Embassy in Oman in collaboration with the Presidential Secretariat and the Foreign Ministry of Sri Lanka, made special arrangements for the repatriation of 320 stranded Sri Lankan migrant workers from Muscat to Colombo by Sri Lankan Airlines on 25 February 2021. This includes more than 81 stranded Sri Lankan migrant workers who had overstayed in the Sultanate of Oman after the expiry of their visas. Others included Sri Lankan migrant workers who lost their jobs, sheltered at the Embassy Safe House, released from prisons and who were under medical emergencies.
The Government of Oman granted an amnesty for the Sri Lankan destitute migrant workers to leave Oman with the full waiver of their penalties and fines. The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Muscat provided them with necessary travel documents free of charge to return back home. Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Sultanate of Oman Ameer Ajwad extended his sincere gratitude to the Government of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik for the generous gesture extended to the destitute Sri Lankan migrant workers for their return back home with the exemption of their penalties/fines.
The Government of Sri Lanka arranged free PCR tests for all 320 destitute Sri Lankan migrant workers on their arrival at the BIA and provided quarantine facilities for all of them with accommodation, food and other facilities free of charge for 14 days at a Quarantine Centre maintained by the Government.
Sri Lanka Embassy
Muscat
28 February 2021
