Sri Lanka, Jan. 23 -- The tax changes included in the Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill propose to make major revisions to Sri Lanka's corporate tax structure and interestingly, to substantially reduce the income tax rate on the so-called sin industries.
The amendments propose to reduce the corporate income tax rate on liquor, tobacco, betting and gaming to 28 percent, from April 1, 2020, from the current 40 percent. At the same time, the standard tax rate on trading, banking, finance, insurance, etc. is proposed to be reduced to 24 percent.
Thus, the difference between the standard corporate tax rate and the tax rate charged on the sin industries is proposed to be reduced to just 4 percent, from the earlier 12 percent.
The government plans...