VAT on Textbooks to Be Removed; President Anura Kumara

14-Sep-2026

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Measures will be taken to remove the Value Added Tax (VAT) imposed on textbooks, and proposals to this effect will be included in the 2027 Budget, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said.

He made these remarks while addressing a political meeting held in Nochchiyagama on 13 September.

He further said:

“We are running the State administration while the country is recovering from an economically difficult situation. We have achieved economic stability, but we have not yet achieved economic independence.

“We have initiated measures to achieve economic independence. More funds will be allocated in next year's Budget to protect free education and free healthcare and to make the delivery of public services more efficient.

“Measures will be taken to remove VAT imposed on textbooks. Proposals to this effect will be included in the 2027 Budget,” he said.