Did freelance work for a Sri Lankan client, now he’s ghosting me. What should I do?

Hi everyone,

I recently found a client here in Sri Lanka. We agreed on the work, he paid me an advance, and I completed the project. But now he’s not answering my calls or messages, and he hasn’t accepted the final work or paid the balance.

This is my first proper freelance client, so I was depending on this payment. I don’t know whether to keep chasing him or just move on.

Has anyone here faced this situation in Sri Lanka? How do you protect yourself from this kind of problem in freelancing? Any advice would mean a lot 🙏

Thanks in advance!