• No revoking of restrictions in the offing: Treasury 

Speculation regarding the possible relaxation of import restrictions imposed by the Government on vehicle imports has been refuted by the Ministry of Finance.

During the previous week, certain media institutions asserted that the Government was considering relaxing its import restrictions with regard to vehicle imports from Japan.

However, speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, Treasury Deputy Secretary R.M.P. Rathnayake vehemently denied these rumours and stated that the Government would not be relaxing its restrictions on vehicle imports at any point in the near future. 

The decision on relaxing the existing restrictions on vehicle imports would be made once the foreign exchange liquidity issue in the country subsided, he noted. 

Elaborating further, he stated: “Once we start receiving sufficient levels of foreign exchange inflows into the country, we will consider relaxing these restrictions on vehicle imports. However, we are still not satisfied with the level of foreign exchange inflows.”

Rathnayake further noted that the decision to relax import restrictions would be taken solely by the Government and that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had not imposed any mandatory deadline for Sri Lanka to relax its import restrictions. 

He stated that the IMF was well aware that the import restrictions imposed by Sri Lanka were temporary and would be relaxed once the situation in the country improved.  

Similarly, speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, Vehicle Importers’ Association of Sri Lanka (VIASL) President Indika Sampath Merenchige denied any knowledge of a move to relax the existing restriction on vehicle imports, charging that the rumour was false.

He noted that the likelihood of the Government relaxing its current import restrictions was highly unlikely, particularly when considering that it would not even release the more than 600 vehicles currently impounded by the Customs.

“This Government is very frustrating and inefficient. They say that they don’t have enough revenue, but at the same time they let these 600 vehicles just waste away at the Colombo Port. They could have released these vehicles and charged a duty on them,” he stated.