Vehicle import restrictions to be lifted in stages from Oct. 1

Sri Lanka’s State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe says that the Cabinet of Ministers has decided to allow the import of vehicles under several stages starting from Oct. 1.

He said that restrictions on importing public transport vehicles will be removed from October 01, 2024, while those on importing commercial and goods transport vehicles will be lifted from December 01, 2024.

Meanwhile, the state minister revealed that the restrictions on importing other passenger vehicles, including cars, will be removed from February 01, 2025. Earlier today, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said that the Cabinet decided to lift all vehicle import restrictions by February 2025.

”With the significant improvement in forex reserves and the strength of the rupee, the Cabinet of Ministers has decided to lift all vehicle import ban/restrictions by February 2025,” he said.

”This decision is part of our ongoing efforts to restore normalcy in the economy and meet the needs of our people,” the minister had said in a post on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter).

The government of Sri Lanka decided to suspend vehicle imports in 2021 due to the economic crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic.

As the severe economic crisis continued, authorities decided to restrict vehicle imports further. Meanwhile, in June, the Ministry of Finance announced a plan to lift the restrictions by 2025 gradually.