Government explains 8 tax changes, denies imposing additional burden on public

Newswire reports that Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Anil Jayantha Fernando defended a set of government tax changes in a statement from the Ministry of Finance, rejecting claims that they increased the public’s tax burden. The measures covered vehicle imports, bank-interest withholding tax, alcohol and cigarette duties, service exports and digital platforms.

Newswire says Fernando described a 50% surcharge on customs duties for private vehicle imports as temporary. He said it was introduced amid economic pressure linked to the conflict in the Middle East, to restrain foreign-exchange outflows, protect reserves and avoid disruption to essential imports, rather than to raise government revenue.

Newswire reports that Fernando defended revised customs duties on electric vehicles as part of efforts to reform the tax structure, improve fairness and limit revenue losses. On bank-interest withholding tax, which increased from 5% to 10%, he said people who are not liable for income tax can seek to avoid the deduction by submitting a declaration or affidavit confirming their status; for taxpayers, the deduction can be credited against their final annual tax liability.

Newswire reports that Fernando also addressed a 6% increase in excise duties on alcohol and cigarettes, but the supplied report ends before providing his explanation of that measure. It likewise identifies taxation of service exports and digital platforms among the topics covered but gives no further details about those measures in the supplied text.

Written automatically by AI from the outlets’ own reports, and not reviewed by an editor. It can be wrong — the original report is the authority.