Surcharge Tax Bill will be amended - AG tells SC

Surcharge Tax Bill will be amended; will NOT include EPF / ETF - AG tells SC

by Zulfick Farzan 02-03-2022 | 11:49 AM

COLOMBO (News 1st); The proposed Surcharge Tax Bill that was presented to Parliament, will be amended in a manner that will not include 13 funds, including the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and the Employees’ Trust Fund (ETF), Sri Lanka's Attorney General told the Supreme Court on Wednesday (2).

Additional Solicitor General Viveka Siriwardena told the Supreme Court that the Finance Secretary had informed the Attorney General in this regard in writing.

The Samagi Jana Balavegaya, one of the main opposition factions in Sri Lanka, and several other bodies filed petitions with the Supreme Court challenging the proposed Surcharge Tax Bill that was presented to Parliament.

The Government on 22nd February presented the proposed Surcharge Tax Bill to Parliament.

The applications challenging the Bill seek a Supreme Court ruling to term the Bill as inconsistent with the constitution.

The Bill, which imposes a retrospective one-time surcharge tax of 25% on persons and companies with a taxable income over Rs. 2 billion for the year 2020/2021, was presented by Leader of the House Minister Dinesh Gunawardena on 22nd February.

The Bill was drafted in keeping with the proposal in the 2022 Budget to impose a one-off 25% surcharge tax on individuals or companies earning taxable income more than Rs. 2 billion for the assessment year 2020/2021.

Concerns were voiced by experts, opposition politicians as well as members of the government itself that the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and the Employees’ Trust Fund (ETF) would also be subjected to the surcharge tax.

Sri Lanka’s Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa on 14th February. assured the Cabinet of Ministers that the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and the Employees’ Trust Fund (ETF) as well as 9 other funds will be exempted from the 25% Surcharge Tax proposed in the 2022 Budget.