Minister of Finance Basil Rajapaksa, delivered his inaugural budget speech today (12). This is the 76th budget of an independent Sri Lanka and it is also the second budget of the incumbent Government.
Key takeaways from the Minister’s speech are detailed below:
Annual Warrant for State expenditure to be made a Quarterly Warrant in the future
Telephone expenditure in State institutions to be slashed by 25%
Construction of new office buildings for State institutions to be suspended for two years
Eligibility for MPs’ pensions to be extended to 10 years from the current 5 years
Radio/TV Broadcasting & Telecasting licences to be issued on an auction basis
Petrol allowance of Ministers & State officials will be reduced by 5 litres per month for an individual
The Special Commodity Levy to come into effect from 01 January 2022
Age limit for Govt. sector employees’ pension extended to 65 years
Rs. 15 million to be allocated for the development of their areas to each MP
Rs.600 Mn to 3-wheelers sector, Rs. 1,500 Mn for Private bus industry, Rs. 400 Mn for school vans & buses and Rs. 500 Mn to Event Management sector to be allocated to compensate for loss during pandemic
Rs.15,000 Mn allocated to provide relief packages to low income earning families
A one-time tax surcharge of 25% to be imposed on individuals or companies earning an annual taxable income of Rs. 2,000 Mn in financial year 2020/21
Rs.5 to be increased on the current retail price of each cigarette
Value added tax on financial services provided by commercial banks & financial institutions to be increased from 15% to 18%
All vehicles held up at SL Customs due to non-payment of taxes or other reasons to be released after charging such relevant taxes and fines
A levy to be imposed on motor vehicles meeting with accidents & such levy to be reimbursed through insurance.
Rs. 1,000 Mn allotted for senior citizens and people with special needs
Proposal to establish telecommunication network covering entire country
Govt. to extend retirement age of public servants to 65 years
Proposal to transfer Rs. 8.5 Bn that Perpetual Treasuries Limited earned in violation of the Code of Conduct at the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, to the Treasury.
Another Rs. 4 Bn allocated for every electorate in the country
MSME sector allocated Rs. 5 billion in relief
Additional Rs. 5000 Bn allocated to promote Organic Agriculture
Additional Rs. 15,000 Bn allocated to ensure access to clean drinking water
Rs. 500 Mn allocated to develop the renewable energy sector
Rs. 2000 Mn allocated for urban housing projects, Rs. 5000 Mn allocated for rural housing
Rs. 500 Mn allocated for the development of houses for people living in estate Line-Houses
Rs. 85,000 Mn will be allocated for rural community development
Rs. 3 Mn for every Grama Niladhari Division. A total of Rs. 42,053 Mn will be allocated for this purpose.
Read the Minister’s full speech by clicking the link courtesy Ada Derana – Finance Minister’s Full Budget Speech – 2022 by Ada Derana on Scribd.