What Are the Steps to Get Tax Preparation Services from Finzdox Accounting?

Accurate tax preparation involves more than completing a return before the deadline. Your income, expenses, tax credits, registrations and supporting documents must be reviewed together so that the return reflects your actual tax position.

Finzdox Accounting supports Sri Lankan businesses and individuals with tax calculations, return preparation, document reviews and electronic filing through the Inland Revenue Department’s e-Services system. The process begins with an initial consultation and continues through preparation, review, approval and submission.

The Tax Preparation Process

Step 1: Schedule an Initial Consultation

Contact Finzdox Accounting to discuss:

• whether you are filing as an individual, sole proprietor, partnership or company;
• the relevant year of assessment;
• your income sources;
• the tax registrations you currently maintain;
• whether previous returns have been filed; and
• any outstanding IRD notices, assessments or payment issues.

This initial discussion helps determine the work required and the documents you need to provide.

Step 2: Gather Your Tax Documents

The documents required depend on your business structure, income sources and registered tax types.

Documents for businesses

A business may need to provide:

• previous income-tax returns and tax computations;
• financial statements, trial balances and general ledgers;
• bank statements for all business accounts;
• sales invoices and income records;
• supplier invoices and expense receipts;
• payroll registers and employee records;
• APIT calculations and payment confirmations;
• EPF and ETF contribution records;
• VAT, SSCL, WHT and AIT returns and certificates, where applicable;
• loan, lease and hire-purchase agreements;
• asset-purchase and disposal documents;
• foreign-currency invoices and bank-remittance evidence; and
• correspondence, notices or assessments received from the IRD.

Asset-purchase documents are used to determine the appropriate tax capital allowances. Accounting depreciation shown in the financial statements is not automatically deductible for income-tax purposes.

Import, export, Customs or sector-licensing documents are required only where they are relevant to the business’s activities.

Documents for individuals

An individual taxpayer may need:

• APIT or T-10 certificates from employers;
• salary and employment-income records;
• bank interest and AIT certificates;
• business or professional income records;
• rental-income documents;
• WHT certificates;
• foreign-income and bank-remittance evidence;
• investment-asset purchase and disposal records;
• evidence of qualifying payments or available reliefs; and
• details of assets and liabilities required for the individual return.

AIT on interest or discounts is generally deducted at 10% from 1 April 2025. Where the income is included in the tax return and the legal conditions are met, the amount deducted may be claimed as a tax credit using the relevant certificate. A loan-interest certificate supporting a business expense is different from an AIT certificate issued to someone receiving interest income.

Step 3: Review Your Tax Position

Finzdox reviews the records provided to identify:

• taxable income from each source;
• allowable business deductions;
• qualifying payments and personal reliefs;
• available APIT, AIT and WHT credits;
• capital allowances on qualifying assets;
• brought-forward losses, where available;
• VAT and SSCL obligations;
• foreign-income treatment;
• filing gaps or previous-period errors; and
• supporting documents that are still missing.

For the Year of Assessment 2025/2026, qualifying resident individuals and non-resident Sri Lankan citizens are entitled to personal relief of Rs. 1,800,000. The individual tax bands are 6%, 18%, 24%, 30% and 36%. Separate treatment applies to matters such as investment-asset gains and certain non-resident taxpayers.

Employee EPF contributions should not be deducted before calculating APIT. EPF and ETF compliance may be reviewed alongside payroll, but it does not reduce an employee’s APIT remuneration calculation.

Step 4: Receive the Tax Calculation and Filing Plan

After reviewing the available records, Finzdox can prepare:

• the income-tax computation;
• a schedule of allowable deductions;
• capital-allowance calculations;
• a summary of available tax credits;
• an estimated final tax balance or refund position;
• a list of missing supporting documents;
• the applicable return and schedules; and
• a filing and payment timetable.

Finzdox may identify legitimate opportunities to reduce the final tax liability through available deductions, reliefs, credits and correct income classification. However, no specific saving or refund can be guaranteed before the taxpayer’s complete records have been reviewed.

Where tax remains payable, Finzdox can explain the due dates and available IRD procedures. A payment arrangement or extension is not automatic and may require approval from the Inland Revenue Department.

Important Deadlines for 2025/2026

The Year of Assessment 2025/2026 covers the period from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.

The return deadline generally applies to corporate, individual and partnership income-tax returns required for the year. Returns are submitted electronically through the IRD e-Services system.

Step 5: Review, Approve and File the Return

Before filing, Finzdox provides the completed calculation and return for review.

Once the taxpayer confirms the information and approves the filing, the service may include:

• preparation of the corporate, partnership or individual return;
• completion of the relevant income and deduction schedules;
• preparation of the Statement of Assets and Liabilities where required;
• reconciliation of APIT, AIT and WHT credits;
• preparation or review of VAT and SSCL returns where separately applicable;
• electronic submission through IRD e-Services; and
• delivery of the filed return and submission acknowledgement.

The taxpayer remains responsible for ensuring that the information supplied is complete and accurate. Finzdox prepares the return using the records and explanations provided by the client.

The completion time depends on the taxpayer’s structure, the quality of the bookkeeping, the number of income sources and whether all supporting documents are available. A fixed one-to-three-day filing period should not be promised for every client.

VAT Review

VAT registration is generally required when taxable supplies exceed or are expected to exceed:

• Rs. 15 million during a quarter; or
• Rs. 60 million during a consecutive 12-month period.

The standard VAT rate is 18%. Commercial importers and exporters are subject to separate compulsory-registration rules.

The article should refer to the Value Added Tax Act No. 14 of 2002 as amended, including the Value Added Tax (Amendment) Act No. 14 of 2026. Referring only to the 2024 amendment does not reflect the law current in July 2026.

Current Income-Tax Rates for Companies

The standard corporate income-tax rate is 30%.

A maximum rate of 15% may apply to qualifying:

• services provided for use outside Sri Lanka, where payment is received in foreign currency and remitted through a bank to Sri Lanka; and
• foreign-source income earned in foreign currency and remitted through a Sri Lankan bank.

Receiving foreign currency alone is not enough to qualify for the 15% rate. The nature of the income and statutory banking conditions must also be satisfied.

The 45% rate applies to gains and profits from conducting betting and gaming and from the manufacture and sale or import and sale of liquor or tobacco products. It should not be described as applying generally to every business associated with those industries.

Why Use Finzdox for Tax Preparation?

Tax errors often begin before the return is prepared. Incomplete bookkeeping, unsupported deductions, incorrect registrations and missing tax certificates can all affect the final calculation.

Finzdox Accounting provides support with:

• corporate and individual income-tax preparation;
• tax computations and deduction reviews;
• APIT, AIT and WHT reconciliations;
• VAT and SSCL compliance;
• capital-allowance calculations;
• foreign-income assessments;
• electronic return submission;
• previous-return reviews; and
• assistance with IRD notices and compliance queries.