Sri Lanka’s newly launched vehicle registration application requires only a phone number and vehicle chassis number for verification, Sri Lanka Customs Additional Director General of Customs Seevali Arukgoda told the media, yesterday (29).

“Whether an individual wants to confirm whether a vehicle has been registered or not, for the matter of verification, all an individual has to do is enter the vehicle’s chassis number and their mobile number on the website. Once the chassis number is entered, an SMS will be sent to the number, verifying the legal status of the vehicle,” Akuregoda said.

Vehicles imported prior to 2005 will however not be able to be verified through the application.

“This is only applicable to vehicles imported after 2005, because our database only contains information on vehicles imported since 2005 onwards.”

According to Akuregoda, the intention of the motor vehicle verification app is that any person can connect to it through their mobile, from the convenience of their homes.

“The expectation is that any individual looking to purchase a vehicle would be able to see whether it is brought down legally, or even if it has been brought in parts and assembled here, or has fraudulent number plates, or just for the sake of verifying the legality of the purchase of the vehicle.”

Akuregoda had previously spoken to media about the launch of the application back in December 2024, along with several other applications, such as a cargo tracking application and an electronic bidding system, to enhance transparency and improve efficiency.