Business accounts: Sri Lanka

Updated 6 October 2026

An honest assessment before work starts, the quote is fixed in writing.

Sri Lanka is recovering from the 2022 crisis, and the government is attracting foreign capital into tourism, agriculture and processing, information technology and business services. Banks are supervised by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and the currency is the Sri Lankan rupee, about 330 rupees per dollar in early October 2026. A business account is opened for a company registered in the country, and foreign investment is brought in through special foreign currency accounts under the Foreign Exchange Act of 2017.

The company and special investment accounts

The inward investment account is the key step: capital brought in around it is hard to return abroad legally later.

What the bank will check

• Certificate of incorporation, articles, details of directors, shareholders and company secretary.
• Tax number and value added tax registration if turnover is above the threshold.
• Passports of directors and beneficial owners, foreign founders' documents with apostille.
• Business description, contracts, payment countries and currencies.
• Source of capital: the bank checks that the money came through the inward investment account.

How the opening works

1. Name check and company registration, usually a few business days.
2. Opening the inward investment account and transferring capital from abroad.
3. Issuing shares to the foreign founder against that money.
4. Tax number, the company's current account and a business foreign currency account.
5. Online banking setup.

The whole process usually takes two to five weeks.

Company obligations after registration

• The company must have a locally qualified secretary who keeps the registers and files documents with the registrar.
• An annual return to the registrar and audited financial statements.
• Tax returns and, above the turnover threshold, monthly value added tax returns.
• A foreign director working on site needs a work visa sponsored by the company or the Board of Investment.

The foreign owner takes out profit and capital through the same special accounts, so opening them correctly at the start saves months on exit.

Company taxes

Incentives apply to certain sectors and Board of Investment projects; we check their terms before registration.

Protection of funds

Deposits in Sri Lankan banks are protected by the state deposit insurance scheme: up to Rs 1,100,000 per depositor per bank, about $3,400. For a company with large turnover this is a small amount, so spare funds are usually held across several banks or in foreign currency.

Who gets refused

The bank will refuse or delay opening if the capital did not come through the inward investment account, if the founders' documents are not legalised, if the source of money cannot be proven, or if the company, its owners or counterparties are linked to sanctions. We check whether the bank works with Russian citizens before preparing documents.

What we do

Murblz specialists register the company in Sri Lanka, open the inward investment account and company accounts, prepare the founders' documents with apostille, the business description and the explanation of the source of capital, and handle an agreement with the Board of Investment if needed. The cost depends on the project and the bank; a manager will calculate it in the chat. We fix the estimate in writing; the decision to open an account always rests with the bank.

What we do

• Corporate account - opening assistance

See also

Personal account · Investment property · Country taxes · All country programs

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