Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Anil Jayantha Fernando, says a new category for Customs duties has been proposed for electric vehicles that use fuel-powered motors.
Anil Jayantha Fernando disclosed information in this regard while tabling the relevant proposal in Parliament for approval.
Addressing Parliament yesterday, the Deputy Minister said that currently, Sri Lanka allows the import of Diesel and Petrol vehicles, Hybrid-Diesel and Hybrid-Petrol vehicles, and electric vehicles.
He said, however, currently a new type of vehicle, electric vehicles that use fuel-powered motors, have also begun being imported in Sri Lanka.
“This new type of vehicle does not fall under the existing Customs duties. A new HS code has to be created when importing these vehicles to ensure the proper imposition of tax duties. Investigations have found the need to introduce new regulations. This is because, under the existing regulations, higher taxes were being paid for this type of electric vehicle,” he explained.
Deputy Minister Anil Jayantha Fernando said, as such, a Cabinet-approved committee was appointed for this purpose, and a new category was introduced for the new type of electric vehicle that uses fuel-powered motors.
“This new type of vehicle has been categorised between electric and hybrid vehicles. They are not purely electric or purely hybrid. So, the Cabinet committee decided that taxes must be imposed, taking into consideration it as a vehicle between electric and hybrid,” he said.
The Deputy Minister went on to note that due to the said vehicle not having a category before, higher taxes were being paid, pointing out that it has been proposed to impose lower taxes for low-cost vehicles and higher taxes for luxury vehicles.
Anil Jayantha Fernando further said that it has also been proposed that a luxury tax must be included for these vehicles.
“The luxury tax at present is 60% if the CIF value is above Rs. 06 million for an electric vehicle. It has been proposed that the same be imposed for the new electric vehicles that use fuel-powered motors,” he said.
The Deputy Minister of Economic Development emphasized that the new system is designed to reduce tax burdens for lower-cost vehicles, impose higher taxes on luxury models, and ensure fair and practical categorization for modern vehicle types. (Newswire)
