Sri Lanka is raising taxes on food and telecommunication services, and will remove VAT exemptions on several goods, the 2014 budget revealed.
Taxes have been raised on wheat flour, cheese, curd, margarine, sauces, sausages, sweets, chocolates, cereals, pasta, nuts and fruits.
Value added tax exemptions have been removed on the import and supply of paddy, rice, wheat, a range of spices, dessicated coconut, rubber, latex, coconuts, tea including green tea, rice flour, wheat flour, eggs, liquid and powdered milk, said LBO on Thursday, increasing costs for the consumer.
The budget further included tax breaks for professionals who build apartment complexes, while also reducing stamp duty for such projects by 25%. This will apply to doctors, lawyers, engineers, architects and business executives.