Sri Lanka — Legal Help

Police emergency is 119; the tourism authority runs a 1912 hotline and a dedicated Tourist Police division operates in Colombo and the main resort areas. If arrested, say little, ask for your embassy to be notified, and get a local criminal lawyer immediately — embassies will visit, supply lawyer lists and monitor welfare, but cannot bail you out or intervene in the case. Selling sex is not itself the main offence; solicitation (Vagrants Ordinance 1841) and brothel-keeping (Brothels Ordinance 1889) are what police charge, and clients caught in raids are usually released after questioning but can be held.

The age of consent is 16, and the Penal Code (Amendment) Act No. 22 of 1995 created severe offences for any commercial sexual contact with under-18s. Same-sex acts remain criminalized under Penal Code sections 365/365A (1883) — prosecution of tourists is rare but the provisions create an extortion risk; a decriminalisation bill has been before parliament since 2023 without passing.