Ada Derana

Highly Factual

The Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill was passed without amendments in Parliament today (20), according to the Parliamentary Communications Department. According to the statement, the debate on the Second Reading of the Bill took place from 5:40 p.m. to 7:10 p.m. Following this, the Bill was considered at the Committee Stage and subsequently passed, it said. The Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill was presented to Parliament for its First Reading on March 1, 2025. Furthermore, the Speaker, Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne, endorsed the certificate on the Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill today (20), in accordance with Article 79 of the Constitution. Accordingly, the Bill will now be enforced as the Inland Revenue (Amendment) Act No. 02 of 2025, the statement added.

Daily Mirror

Factual

By Yohan Perera and Ajith Siriwardana Colombo, March 20 (Daily Mirror) - The inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill which makes provisions for levying a 15 percent tax on IT service exports was passed in Parliament without a vote. Deputy Minister of Finance Harshana Sooriyaperuma told the House that the Bill actually provides provisions to reduce the tax charged from IT service exports to 15 percent from 30 percent. He said the former government agreed with the IMF to charge a 30 percent on IT service exports. Opposition MP Harsha de Silva said the government has gone back on its word to keep the tax level on IT service exports to zero.