Paying taxes: Time in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Paying taxes: Time was 129 hours per year in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
129 hours per year
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
152nd
of 190 countries
All-time high
262 hours per year
in 2005
All-time low
129 hours per year
in 2018
Years of data
15
2005–2019

Paying taxes: Time in Sri Lanka, 2005–2019

01002003002005201220192005: 262 hours per year2006: 262 hours per year2007: 262 hours per year2008: 262 hours per year2009: 262 hours per year2010: 262 hours per year2011: 262 hours per year2012: 260 hours per year2013: 215.5 hours per year2014: 173 hours per year2015: 173 hours per year2016: 168 hours per year2017: 162 hours per year2018: 129 hours per year2019: 129 hours per year

Source: World Bank. Measured in hours per year.

Analysis

The most recent figure for paying taxes: time in Sri Lanka is 129 hours per year, measured in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 50.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, paying taxes: time in Sri Lanka peaked at 262 hours per year in 2005 and was at its lowest, 129 hours per year, in 2018.

Sri Lanka ranks 152nd of 190 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.

Paying taxes: Time in Sri Lanka, year by year

Annual values for Paying taxes: Time (hours per year) in Sri Lanka, 2005 to 2019.
Year hours per year Change
2005 262 hours per year —
2006 262 hours per year +0.0%
2007 262 hours per year +0.0%
2008 262 hours per year +0.0%
2009 262 hours per year +0.0%
2010 262 hours per year +0.0%
2011 262 hours per year +0.0%
2012 260 hours per year -0.8%
2013 215.5 hours per year -17.1%
2014 173 hours per year -19.7%
2015 173 hours per year +0.0%
2016 168 hours per year -2.9%
2017 162 hours per year -3.6%
2018 129 hours per year -20.4%
2019 129 hours per year +0.0%

Sri Lanka compared with similar countries

  • Sri Lanka's 129 hours per year is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 213 hours per year, 61% of the median. (56 countries reporting)
  • Sri Lanka's 129 hours per year is below the median for South Asia, which is 314.44 hours per year, 41% of the median. (6 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 262 hours per year 262 hours per year 262 hours per year 5
2010s 193.35 hours per year 129 hours per year 262 hours per year 10

Countries ranked near Sri Lanka

  1. 149 Denmark 132 hours per year compare
  2. 150 Austria 131 hours per year compare
  3. 150 Canada 131 hours per year compare
  4. 153 Japan 128.5 hours per year compare
  5. 154 Micronesia (country) 128 hours per year compare
  6. 155 Eswatini 122 hours per year compare
  7. 155 Sweden 122 hours per year compare

See the full ranking of 190 places →

More reference data data for Sri Lanka

All data for Sri Lanka →

Frequently asked questions

What is paying taxes: time in Sri Lanka?
Paying taxes: time in Sri Lanka was 129 hours per year in 2019, according to the World Bank.
What is the highest paying taxes: time recorded in Sri Lanka?
The highest recorded value was 262 hours per year in 2005.
What is the lowest paying taxes: time recorded in Sri Lanka?
The lowest recorded value was 129 hours per year in 2018.
How does Sri Lanka rank for paying taxes: time?
Sri Lanka ranks 152nd out of 190 countries with data for 2019.
Is paying taxes: time rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
Over the last ten years it is down 50.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
The figures come from the World Bank, published as part of Paying taxes: Time (hours per year). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Paying taxes: Time in Sri Lanka. Statizoid. Retrieved 24 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/paying-taxes-time-hours-per-year/sri-lanka/

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About this data

Indicator
Paying taxes: Time (hours per year)
Unit
hours per year
Source
World Bank
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
190 places, 2,789 data points, 2005–2019
Last refreshed

The time to comply with tax laws measures the time taken to prepare, ?le and pay three major types of taxes and contributions: the corporate income tax, value added or sales tax and labor taxes, including payroll taxes and social contributions.