Business · Sri Lanka Bureau
Sri Lanka tax authorities forge cooperation pact to combat evasion
The Inland Revenue Department and Excise Department have signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen coordination in combating tax evasion and money laundering across the country.
LSN Sri Lanka ·
Sri Lanka's two key revenue authorities have formalized their collaboration through a memorandum of understanding designed to tighten tax compliance and curb financial crimes. The agreement between the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) and the Excise Department establishes a framework for enhanced information sharing and coordinated enforcement operations.
The MoU underscores growing recognition that integrated approaches are essential to addressing sophisticated tax evasion schemes and money laundering activities that deplete state coffers. By aligning their investigative and compliance efforts, the two departments aim to identify cross-cutting violations that might otherwise escape detection under fragmented oversight.
The cooperation pact is expected to improve intelligence gathering and enable faster response to suspicious financial activities that involve both income tax and excise-related transactions. Joint operations and shared databases will allow authorities to track patterns of non-compliance more effectively across different revenue streams.
The agreement reflects the government's broader push to strengthen tax administration and financial transparency as it seeks to expand the revenue base and fund development priorities. Enhanced coordination between revenue agencies is seen as critical to improving compliance rates and deterring illicit financial flows that undermine the national economy.
Photo: The Inland Revenue Department building in Colombo, March 2017. Rehman Abubakr via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).