Customs goes paperless, makes digital signatures mandatory

Sri Lanka Customs has made digital signatures mandatory for all customs declarations from 1 October, 2026, with the launch of a paperless declaration processing system.

Importers and declarants must now submit customs declarations and supporting documents bearing a valid digital signature. Declarations submitted under the previous system will no longer be accepted, the President’s Office said in a statement yesterday.

The Digital Signature and Paperless Customs Declaration Processing System was introduced jointly by Sri Lanka Customs and the Revenue Administration Reform and Modernisation Bureau of the Presidential Secretariat. It was launched at the Sri Lanka Customs Auditorium under the patronage of Economic Development Deputy Minister Nishantha Jayaweera and Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake.

A total of 1,144 companies are currently participating in the system.

The President’s Office said the system would make customs clearance faster, more efficient and more transparent, while helping to reduce fraud and corruption.

Jayaweera said Customs was close to reaching its revenue target of Rs. 2.21 trillion for 2026, having also exceeded its target last year. He said all revenue-collecting institutions had exceeded their targets, which had enabled the Government to present a Budget with the lowest deficit and to absorb higher fuel prices resulting from the war in the Middle East without serious damage to the economy.

The Government expects to raise capital expenditure to Rs. 2 trillion next year, from a range of Rs. 1.3 trillion to Rs. 1.4 trillion, Jayaweera said.

He said the Government planned to simplify the tax system next year by removing certain taxes levied in addition to customs duty, and to accelerate the integration of information technology systems across institutions. The paperless system is a step towards establishing a National Single Window, through which businesses and investors can complete all their requirements, he said.

“It will enable all customs-related activities, including import and export procedures, to be carried out online. This is a system that will save time, money and resources for the public, businesses, investors and everyone involved,” Jayaweera said.

Dr. Kumanayake said Customs was on course to exceed its annual revenue target by the end of the next quarter. The Revenue Administration Reform and Modernisation Bureau was set up within the Presidential Secretariat to drive reforms at revenue-collecting institutions, including Customs, and to improve trade facilitation by reducing the cost and time involved, he said.

He acknowledged that the paperless system had faced resistance during consultations. “Some expressed the view that people would lose their jobs. Some companies said they would have to change their organisational procedures because of this,” Dr. Kumanayake said, adding that all stakeholders had since been brought together.

Treasury Secretary Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma said the system would reduce the time and cost of obtaining services and strengthen the capacity of revenue-collecting institutions to increase collection.

Customs Director General Wimal Liyanagemage said the launch was a major step in a series of reforms being carried out at Customs under the guidance of the Presidential Secretariat.

Senior Additional Secretary to the President Seevali Arukgoda, Digital Economy Ministry Secretary Waruna Sri Dhanapala and Deputy Secretary to the Treasury D.J. Seneviratne were also present.