Sri Lanka's rupee depreciated and its foreign reserves fell in the first half of 2026, but the South Asian country had not barred its citizens from travelling overseas in an attempt to curb the outflow of foreign currencies, contrary to a false claim circulating online. The news outlet that has supposedly reported on the ban said the graphic in the false posts did not come from them, while the minister targeted in the claim said he has never made the announcement.
The purported ban was reported in a news graphic containing a quote attributed to Deputy Finance Minister Anil Jayantha Fernando (archived link).
"We will soon ban foreign trips like Dambadiva, Thailand and Dubai. These are the ones that drain the country's dollars," reads a Sinhala-language overlaid text on an image shared on Facebook on July 19, referring to pilgrimage sites mostly found in India visited by Sri Lankan Buddhists annually (archived link).
"If you want to go, go to the village temple or Anuradhapura. There are enough places in Sri Lanka to have fun."
The image appears to mimic news graphics from Sri Lankan broadcaster Newsfirst and includes a photo of Jayantha speaking before a mic (archived link).
The Sri Lankan rupee has weakened by 7.9 percent during the first half of 2026 while official reserves have declined, according to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (archived here and here).
"Although the Sri Lanka rupee recorded a slight appreciation in the early months of the year, it depreciated notably...
Sri Lanka's rupee depreciated and its foreign reserves fell in the first half of 2026, but the South Asian country had not barred its citizens from travelling overseas in an attempt to curb the ou...