Sri Lanka Customs has collected Rs. 1.18 trillion in revenue so far this year, with April setting a new monthly record of Rs. 236.5 billion in single-month collections, the agency said.
The department has now exceeded its monthly revenue target by more than 130% for four consecutive months, with April marking the strongest performance of the run, NewsFirst reported on Friday.
The figures extend the milestone disclosed earlier this week, when Customs Spokesman Chandana Punchihewa said the agency had crossed Rs. 1 trillion in the first 132 days of the year — the fastest path to that mark in its history. At Rs. 1.18 trillion as of mid-May, collections now stand at roughly 53% of the Rs. 2,207 billion annual target.
Last year, Customs collected a record Rs. 2,551 billion against a revised Rs. 2,241 billion target. The 2026 target was set 13.5% below the 2025 outcome on the assumption that the post-liberalisation surge in car imports would fade. April’s record monthly intake suggests that backlog is still clearing faster than projected.
Customs attributes the run to stronger enforcement, improved valuation practices and rising import volumes after years of contraction. Tighter monitoring of under-invoicing and misdeclaration has also lifted yields, alongside a series of large interdictions in the April–May enforcement push.
The agency has emerged as one of the Treasury’s largest single revenue contributors as the government works to meet fiscal targets under the IMF-supported programme. Strong import-tax receipts have helped offset weaker direct-tax growth and given the Treasury room as it manages the cost of diesel and electricity subsidies.
Source: NewsFirst — Sri Lanka Customs revenue soars past one trillion rupee mark.
