Payslip format requirements in Sri Lanka

Last verified against the primary sources on 15 October 2026.

Most Sri Lankan employers hand over a printed salary sheet or a PDF at month end and assume that is enough. Sometimes it is. We found no single statute that prescribes a universal payslip template, but the EPF, APIT, stamp duty and minimum wage rules each depend on figures the payslip should show. Together they set a more detailed standard than many employers realise.

This guide sets out what a defensible payslip should contain, why each item matters, how digital payslips work, and what goes wrong when the payslip is wrong.

Is a payslip legally required?

In the sources we checked, no single law requires every employer to issue a payslip in a set form. What the employer must be able to show is that wages, EPF and ETF contributions, APIT and other deductions were calculated and paid correctly, and a payslip is the main document that does that for the employee each month. At the year end the employer must also give each employee a T-10 certificate of income tax deductions, and a leaver must receive one within 30 days after the employment ends (s.87(4)) [1]. The monthly payslips are the running record behind it. For what an employer may take from pay, see the salary deduction rules.

What a payslip should show

Employee identification

• Full name
• Employee number (important where two employees share a name)
• Designation or job title
• Department or cost centre, for larger or multi-site employers

Pay period

• The period covered: month and year for monthly payrolls; start and end dates for weekly or fortnightly payrolls
• Payment date

Earnings breakdown

Show each component separately rather than a single gross figure, because they are treated differently for EPF and APIT.

• Basic salary
• Cost of living allowance, where paid separately
• Budgetary relief allowance: no longer a separate line. The allowances payable at 31 March 2025 were folded into the national minimum wage, and the separate allowance was discontinued from 31 March 2025. From 1 January 2026 the national minimum wage is Rs 30,000 a month or Rs 1,200 a day (Rs 27,000 and Rs 1,080 from 1 April to 31 December 2025) [2]
• Overtime: hours, the rate applied and the amount
• Other allowances: transport, meals, medical and similar, each listed separately
• Bonuses, incentives and commissions: each listed separately

Deductions breakdown

Show every deduction individually, each with its basis: the law, the employment contract or the employee's written consent.

• EPF employee contribution: 8 percent of EPF earnings, with the amount [3]
• APIT: the amount withheld and the tax table used (see below)
• Stamp duty: Rs 25 on a receipt or discharge for more than Rs 25,000, under the Stamp Duty (Special Provisions) Act No. 12 of 2006 [4]. A payment of Rs 25,000 or less does not attract it
• Salary advance recovery: referenced to the written agreement
• Other deductions: each named, with its basis

Net pay

• The amount actually paid

Employer contributions (for information)

Showing the employer's EPF (12 percent) and ETF (3 percent) helps employees see their full package [3] [5]. We found no rule requiring it, but if you show them, label them clearly as employer costs.

Use the payslip to explain how gross pay becomes net salary, not just to display a final bank-transfer amount.

EPF: what counts as earnings

A common payslip error is putting the wrong items in the EPF base. "Earnings" in section 47 of the EPF Act include wages, salary or fees, cost of living and similar allowances, holiday pay and food or its cash value; overtime and bonuses are outside the base [3]. Genuine reimbursements of actual expenses are not pay. For a fixed allowance, the test is what it pays for, not its name.

Make the EPF base visible on the payslip, so anyone can see what was in and what was out. Unexplained differences between gross earnings and the contribution base are what an inspection looks for. The 8 percent and 12 percent should both be calculable from the payslip figures.

APIT: what the payslip should capture

APIT (Advance Personal Income Tax) is the scheme that replaced PAYE, the old name. It is withheld under section 83A of the Inland Revenue Act, and deduction has been mandatory for employers since 1 January 2023 [6] [7]. On regular monthly pay, nothing is deducted up to Rs 150,000 [8]. The deduction is compulsory regardless of the employee's consent; the Primary Employment Declaration decides whether the employer applies Table 01 or Table 07 [8].

The payslip should show:

• the employment income for the month on which APIT was worked out, with nothing deducted first (not even the employee's EPF) [8]
• the table applied: Table 01 for regular pay in a primary employment, Table 02 for a bonus [9], Table 05 for an employee who joins or retires during the year, Table 07 for a second job or a missing declaration
• the amount deducted
• APIT deducted for the year to date

When APIT is nil. Note the reason. On Table 01 it is nil because regular pay is Rs 150,000 or less. A missing primary declaration is not a reason for nil: without one the employer applies Table 07, and if the employee has not disclosed primary employment income the rate is 36 percent [10].

The T-10 brings together the year's APIT figures, so if the monthly payslips are wrong, the T-10 will be wrong too.

Digital payslips

We found no rule against digital payslips. An employer may issue them by email, a payroll portal or an app, provided that:

• the employee has reasonable access to the channel
• the payslip is in a format the employee can keep and print (PDF is standard)
• the employer keeps a secure, backed-up copy

The employer must be able to produce payroll records when an inspector or the IRD asks, and readily retrievable digital records do that. Password-protecting payslips with a personal identifier is good practice. From 1 January 2027 the core duties of the Personal Data Protection Act also apply to payroll data [11].

What happens when the payslip is wrong

EPF under-contributions. If the EPF base is too low, the employer owes the shortfall on both the employee's and the employer's share, plus surcharge from 5 percent up to 50 percent depending on how late each month is (EPF Act s.16) [3].

APIT shortfalls. An employer that fails to deduct must pay the tax as if it had been withheld (s.86(3)), and may recover it from the employee (s.86(6)) [1]. Paying late adds a penalty of 20 percent of the tax due but not paid under section 179(1) if the tax is still unpaid fourteen days after the due date [1] [12], plus interest at 1.5 percent a month or part of a month under section 159(1) [1].

Stamp duty. Stamp duty collected on salary receipts has to reach the IRD. Where stamp duty is compounded, it is remitted quarterly within 15 days of the end of the quarter [4].

Wage disputes. Claims of underpayment turn on payroll evidence. An employer that cannot produce payslips and records that match is in a weak position.

Common payslip mistakes

Showing only net pay. Without the earnings and deduction lines, the employee cannot check the EPF or APIT.

Still showing a separate budgetary relief allowance. It was folded into the minimum wage from 1 April 2025 [2]. Show the employee's actual pay structure, and check that basic pay plus any absorbed allowance is at least Rs 30,000 a month (Rs 1,200 a day).

Leaving APIT blank. Show the table and the amount, including nil with its reason.

Rs 25 stamp duty on payslips at or below the limit. It applies only to a receipt for more than Rs 25,000 [4].

One gross figure for EPF. Make clear what was in the EPF base and what was not.

Showing employer EPF as a deduction. The employer's 12 percent is its cost. Only the employee's 8 percent comes out of pay.

Keeping payroll records

We found no single retention period for payroll records in the sources we checked. Set a written policy that covers the tax years the IRD may still examine and any open employee claim, and keep records connected to a dispute until it is closed. Many employers choose six years or more.

Talk to us. If you want your payslip format checked against the current EPF, APIT, stamp duty and minimum wage rules, our payroll team can go through it with you; book a consultation at our contact page.

This guide is general information on the law as at 15 October 2026 and is not advice on your specific situation.

References

1. Inland Revenue Department. Inland Revenue Act, No. 24 of 2017, consolidated, ss.86(3) and (6), 87(4), 159(1) and 179. https://www.ird.gov.lk/en/publications/Acts_Income%20Tax_2017/IRA_Cons_Act_-_2025_Changes.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Parliament of Sri Lanka. National Minimum Wage of Workers (Amendment) Act, No. 11 of 2025, operative from 1 April 2025. https://www.documents.gov.lk/view/acts/2025/7/11-2025_E.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Central Bank of Sri Lanka. Employees' Provident Fund Act, No. 15 of 1958 (reprint), ss.10, 16 and 47. https://www.cbsl.gov.lk/sites/default/files/cbslweb_documents/laws/acts/en/epf_act.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Inland Revenue Department. Stamp duty web page: Rs 25 on a receipt for more than Rs 25,000; compounding. https://www.ird.gov.lk/en/type%20of%20taxes/sitepages/stampduty.aspx . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Employees' Trust Fund Board. Employees' Trust Fund Act, No. 46 of 1980, s.16. https://etfb.lk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/ETF-Act.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Parliament of Sri Lanka. Inland Revenue (Amendment) Act, No. 45 of 2022, s.15 (s.83A(1A)). https://www.ird.gov.lk/en/publications/Acts_Income%20Tax_2017/IR_Act_No._45_2022_E.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Inland Revenue Department. Public notice PN/IT/2022-03 (15 December 2022), para 1. https://www.ird.gov.lk/en/Lists/Latest%20News%20%20Notices/Attachments/479/PN_IT_2022-03_15122022_E.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Inland Revenue Department. APIT Tax Table 01, Y/A 2025/26, instructions, paras 01 to 03. https://www.ird.gov.lk/en/publications/APIT_Tax_Tables/2025-2026/Table%20-%201/02.%20APIT_2526_Table_01_Text.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Inland Revenue Department. APIT Tax Table 02, Y/A 2025/26, instructions. https://www.ird.gov.lk/en/publications/APIT_Tax_Tables/2025-2026/Table%20-%202/03.%20APIT_2526_Table_02_Text.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Inland Revenue Department. APIT Tax Table 07, Y/A 2025/26, instructions and Table 7.1. https://www.ird.gov.lk/en/publications/APIT_Tax_Tables/2025-2026/Table%20-%207/08.%20APIT_2526_Table_07_Text.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Department of Government Printing. Gazette Extraordinary No. 2498/16 of 22 July 2026, PDPA commencement on 1 January 2027. https://documents.gov.lk/view/egz/2026/7/2498-16_E.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.

1. Inland Revenue Department. Guide to the Return of Income Tax, Y/A 2025/26, Section 09, penalty of 20 percent of tax due but not paid, 10 percent on a late instalment, interest at 1.5 percent a month or part of a month. https://www.ird.gov.lk/en/Downloads/IT_Individuals_Doc/Asmt_IIT_004_2025_2026_E.pdf . Primary. Accessed 15 October 2026.