Sri Lanka worker remittances up 5.6-pct to US$734.4mn in Sept 2026

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s official remittances from expatriate workers rose 5.6 percent to US$ 734.4 million in September 2026, while they reached US$6,865.4 million in the first nine months of the year with an 18.1 percent growth, Central Bank data showed.

Analysts predict Sri Lanka will see record high remittances this year, surpassing the historically high annual worker remittance of US$8,076.2 million hit last year.

The remittances hit a seven-month low in June following the rupee’s depreciation after escalation in the Middle East, the largest foreign job market for Sri Lankans. They have recovered since then.

The rupee has been largely stable and showed a slight appreciating trend since July though it has shown some downside pressure since early last month, currency dealers say.

When there is uncertainty over the exchange rate, market analysts say expatriates switch to informal remittance methods like Hawala and Undiyal, which do not go through the formal banking system.

The island nation saw a record monthly remittance of US$879.1 million in December last year.

Higher worker remittances follow a higher number of the island nation’s labour force leaving the country to search for foreign jobs amid Sri Lanka’s recovery from an unprecedented 2022 economic crisis, official data showed.

Remittances have risen continuously after the central bank abandoned a parallel exchange rate regime in 2022, which compelled most expatriates to switch from informal Undiyal and Hawala money transfer methods.

The island nation has been in the process of sending more migrant workers focusing on professionals to bring in higher foreign exchange since the country declared bankruptcy in 2022.

Worker remittances through official channels fell sharply in 2021 after many expatriates switched to informal money transferring channels because they were offered higher rates than formal banking channels.

The move followed the Central Bank printing money to sterilize interventions and keep a policy rate down, which triggered parallel exchange rates settled outside the formal banking system.

From April 2022, the interest rates were raised by unprecedented levels, slowing credit and the need to print money to keep rates down. Later, the Central Bank started its dovish monetary policy until May this year. (Colombo/ October 17/2026)