Category: Budget
Lack of openness in govt agencies a concern for assessing budget promises: Verité Research
Independent research institute and think tank in Sri Lanka, Verité Research highlights that the level of openness of government agencies is a major concern in evaluating their performance against budget promises. Presenting an overview of selected cabinet decisions taken in 2020, Research Assistant Udahiruni Atapattu described the lack of willingness of ministries and other government […]
Sri Lanka’s budget transparency: improving but still behind international standards
Jun 05, 2020 (LBO) – The Open Budget Survey (OBS) scores countries on the openness of their budget process and is the world’s only independent assessment of information disclosure in public budgets. The survey is conducted every two years. The 2019 cycle of the OBS has placed Sri Lanka 54th out of 117 countries, with […]
Primary deficit will widen to 1.9-pct of GDP with new tax cuts & exemptions: IMF Mission
Feb 08, 2020 (LBO) – IMF staff concluding a visit to Sri Lanka said that the country’s primary deficit could widen further to 1.9 percent of GDP in 2020, due to newly implemented tax cuts and exemptions, clearance of domestic arrears, and backloaded capital spending from 2019. The mission reminds that fiscal prudence remains critical […]
Tax changes included in proposed Inland Revenue Amendment Bill
Jan 22, 2020 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Finance Ministry announced the list of tax changes introduced in the proposed Inland Revenue Amendment Bill which is to be presented to Parliament for approval. Related: Cabinet nod to amend Inland Revenue Act The complete list of proposed tax amendments: (i). Interest Income (a) Interest paid up to […]
IRD issues circular to banks about new Withholding Tax structure
Jan 01, 2020 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Inland Revenue Department has issued a new circular to banks and financial institutions detailing the new Withholding Tax structure which will be effective from today to 31 March 2020. According to the circular, for the period from today to 31 March, aggregate interest income from all the accounts […]
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Dec 19, 2019 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings has revised the Outlook on Sri Lanka’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to Negative from Stable and has affirmed the IDR at ‘B’. KEY RATING DRIVERS Revision of the Outlook to Negative from Stable reflects rising risks to debt sustainability from a significant shift in fiscal policy […]
Sri Lanka tax cuts to shave off Rs560bn govt. revenue in 2020: Asia Securities
Dec 10, 2019 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s recently announced tax cuts will likely shave off 560 billion rupees from government income in 2020, launching its equity outlook report for next year, Asia Securities Research said. Even though a pick up in consumer activity and higher collections compared to 2019 will lead to a partial clawback, […]
Dushni Weerakoon highlights critical role tax policies can play to spur economic growth
Dec 06, 2019 (LBO) – Executive Director of the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS), Dr. Dushni Weerakoon this week highlighted the critical role tax policies can play in spurring economic growth of a country, specially a developing country. Addressing the 23rd Annual Oration on Taxation organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants […]
‘s new tax regime
Dec 02, 2019 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Finance Ministry says that the recent tax reforms constitute a much-needed transformation in the country’s tax system to address the numerous problems stemming from its extreme complexity with the multiplicity of taxes. The Finance Ministry said that these policy measures will be implemented within a coherent policy framework, […]
Fiscal stimulus should be structured not to overheat economy: CB Governor
Nov 29, 2019 (LBO) – The government is to make a policy statement as to how the recently introduced fiscal stimulus would be accommodated within a stable framework, Central Bank Governor Indrajit Coomaraswamy said. “The government will be making a statement as to how this would be accommodated within a stable framework,” Governor Coomaraswamy told […]
Recent tax cuts support short term but greater fiscal clarity needed for medium term: CBSL
Nov 29, 2019 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank observes that the recent tax revisions would support lower inflation and higher economic growth in the short term, but was of the view that greater clarity with regard to the medium-term fiscal path of the government is required to assess the impact on the economy over […]
Sri Lanka announces tax reliefs; cuts VAT to 8-pct, removes PAYE, WHT & Capital Gains Tax
Nov 27, 2019 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s new Cabinet of Ministers has given its approval to reduce Value Added Tax (VAT) and various other taxes, Co-Cabinet Spokesperson Minister Bandula Gunawardana said. “Required amendments and gazette notifications are currently being prepared,” Gunawardana told reporters. “This will be a stimulus to all areas of the economy and […]