The Government has already taken a number of measures to encourage the use of electric vehicles. Accordingly, measures have also been taken to encourage the manufacturing of electric vehicles locally.
Most Asian countries have followed more convenient access by imposing zero (0%) Custom tariffs for assembling and manufacturing electric vehicles and plug–in hybrid vehicles.
Through this attractive encouragement, investors and manufacturers can be attracted as well and it can be directed towards future export probabilities which paves the way to act according to the global criteria on environmental security.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal forwarded by the President in his capacity as the Finance, Economic Stabilization and National Policies Minister to impose a zero (0%) Customs tariff on the CIF value when importing electric vehicles, electric two-wheelers with a power grade up to 500 kW and modern partially assembled Semi-Knocked-Down (SKD) sets with an engine capacity up to 3000 CC for assembling plug-in hybrid electric vehicles for the investors that engage them for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles for a minimum investment of 50 million US dollars by companies already agreed with Sri Lanka Board of Investment or new companies entering into agreements.
The Cabinet of Ministers has also approved the resolution by President Ranil Wickremasinghe as Finance, Economic Stabilization and National Policies Minister to grant permission to import new rechargeable electric vehicles subject to exemption of Custom tariff to an amount not exceeding the value of United States Dollars 30,000 including insurance and shipping charges for projects that accomplished the following receivable criteria in order to attract investments under the programmes “Retaining and extending investors for re-investment of existing Board of Investment approved companies” and “The 100 service companies programme that are Board of Investment’s information technology and companies empowered by information technology”.
