Prime Minister (PM) Harini Amarasuriya announced that the admission process for students seeking entry to government universities for the 2025/2026 academic year is scheduled to commence in the first week of September 2026.

During a parliamentary session on the 6th, she stated that all student registration lists will be submitted to the respective universities by 31 August, 2026, following the announcement of university admission cut-off marks. Universities will then determine the exact start dates for academic programs, expected to begin in early September.

The Prime Minister also revealed plans to introduce two new degree programs for the upcoming academic year: a Geographical Information Systems (GIS) degree at the University of Ruhuna with an intake of 50 students, and an Electronic and Intelligent Systems Engineering program at the University of Peradeniya, also admitting 50 students.

Official figures show that 281,810 candidates sat for the 2025 G.C.E. Advanced Level examination, with 176,538 qualifying for university entrance. Of these, approximately 42,937 students are expected to be admitted into state universities this year.

While the overall undergraduate intake will remain unchanged, the government aims to enhance facilities and improve the quality and efficiency of higher education delivery across the country.