Foreign Currency Declaration
When entering and leaving Sri Lanka, you will be required to declare foreign currencies if the amount you carry is in excess of the limit allowed by the Exchange Control Laws of Sri Lanka. Here you will find Sri Lanka's regulations related foriegn currency declaration.
1. A person may bring any sum of money in foreign currencies into Sri Lanka. This sum could be in TCs, bank drafts or currency notes. However, if the total of such sum exceeds US$ 15,000 such sum should be declared to the Sri Lanka Customs.
2. If a person whishes to take out from Sri Lanka any sum in excess of US$ 5000 in currency notes out of the sum brought in as per (1) above, such person should declare the entirety of the sum brought in, even if it is less than US$ 15,000.
3. Any person may take out from Sri Lanka a total of legally acquired foreign currency in any form up to US,000 without any declaration. However, if the sum in currency notes exceeds US$ 5,000, the entirety of the sum must also be declared.
4. Any person can bring any sum of foreign currency earned from employment, profession or business abroad and upon declaration of such foreign currency to Customs as per (1) above and may retain such sum in his/her possession for 90 days before changing into Sri Lanka rupees.
6. Foreign currency retained by any person as per (4) and (5) above may be used for subsequent visits abroad for permitted transactions within the allowed period of retention.
7. Any person returning after travelling abroad may retain without any time limit a sum of US$ 2,000 out of the foreign currency purchasd for such travel or earned by him/her outside Sri Lanka for his use during future travels.
(The foreign currency amounts indicated in US $ may be inequivalent amounts in other convertible foreign currencies)