Deputy Minister of Economic Development Nishantha Jayaweera has urged the public not to queue at Inland Revenue Department (IRD) offices to obtain Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TIN), stating that alternative arrangements are being introduced to facilitate the process.

Addressing Parliament today (03), Deputy Minister Jayaweera said the requirement to obtain TIN certificates had caused unnecessary public concern and urged people not to panic.

He said the IRD would soon issue a special announcement outlining a new procedure under which individuals would no longer be required to visit IRD offices to obtain TIN certificates for transactions such as obtaining driving licences, revenue licences or opening bank accounts.

Under the proposed arrangement, individuals who do not have registered for the TIN certificate would be able to submit a copy of their National Identity Card (NIC), an active mobile phone number and an email address to the institution from which they intend to obtain a service.

The relevant institution will then coordinate directly with the IRD to complete the necessary TIN-related procedures while facilitating the service requested by the applicant.

The Deputy Minister explained that the institution would forward the applicant’s details to the IRD, which would subsequently issue a TIN or income tax number to the email address provided.

He added that individuals would also be able to obtain TIN and income tax certificates through the IRD’s online system using their ID number and registered email addresses.

According to Jayaweera, the new procedure will apply to both individuals who already possess a TIN and those who have not yet obtained one.

His remarks come following reports of long queues at IRD offices across Sri Lanka, with members of the public complaining of delays and difficulties in obtaining TIN certificates following the introduction of mandatory TIN requirements for several transactions from November 1.

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