How to bring money from Sri Lanka to Canada: exchange control rules

Which Sri Lankan rules apply?

Three documents matter, all made under the Foreign Exchange Act No. 12 of 2017:

• Foreign Exchange (Fund Transfers Abroad by Emigrants) Regulations No. 2 of 2026 (Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/37, June 18, 2026). In force from June 20, 2026. It replaced the 2021 emigrant regulations.
• A Section 22 Order (Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/38, June 18, 2026). It temporarily limits some outward transfers. It is valid for six months from June 20, 2026.
• Directions from the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) to banks, issued through its Department of Foreign Exchange (DFE).

Section 22 Orders have been renewed many times since 2020, with different limits. Check the DFE website for the Order in force on the day you transfer.

Who counts as an emigrant?

Under the 2026 regulations, an emigrant includes:

• a Sri Lankan who has permanent residence in another country, such as Canadian permanent residence;
• a Sri Lankan who has citizenship of another country;
• certain dual citizens and people of Sri Lankan parentage, as defined in the regulations;
• minor children of the people above.

Emigrants aged 18 or over can transfer funds that involve converting rupees to foreign currency. They can do this when they leave Sri Lanka, or while living abroad.

How much can an emigrant transfer?

Not counted against the allowance: current income (such as salary and pension benefits), foreign currency held in Sri Lankan banks that you owned, inherited or received as a gift, and some investment proceeds.

Counted against the allowance: money from selling Sri Lankan assets bought with rupees, many inherited assets, and assets received as gifts from immediate family.

Which accounts do you need?

1. Emigrants' Rupee Account. Holds rupee funds, such as property sale proceeds. Savings, current or term deposit.
2. Emigrants' Transaction Rupee Account. You can hold one. All outward transfers under the allowance must go through it.
3. Transfer. From the transaction account, the bank converts and sends money abroad, or to your own foreign currency account in Sri Lanka. The amount is deducted from your allowance at the time of transfer.

Older account types were renamed. Capital Transactions Rupee Accounts become Emigrants' Transaction Rupee Accounts. Emigrants' Remittable Income Accounts and Non-Resident Rupee Accounts become Emigrants' Rupee Accounts. The regulations give banks three months from June 20, 2026 to do this.

Banks must check that each transaction is genuine. Expect to show your passport, proof of PR or citizenship abroad, and documents for the source of the money, such as a deed of sale.

What happens on the Canadian side?

• Wires: no border declaration. Your Canadian bank may ask where the money came from. Keep the Sri Lankan bank's transfer records. See why your bank asks where your money came from.
• Cash: report CAD 10,000 or more to the CBSA when you arrive. See declaring money at the border.
• Gifts from family: Canada has no gift tax on money you receive, but income it earns later can be taxable. Read is gifted money taxable.

Sri Lanka also limits how much cash travellers can carry out, in rupees and in foreign currency. The limits have changed several times. Check the current rules with the CBSL Department of Foreign Exchange or Sri Lanka Customs before you travel, rather than carrying large amounts of cash.

Step by step: transferring your allowance

1. Confirm you qualify. You need PR or citizenship abroad, or a temporary visa leading to PR (for the USD 30,000 settlement claim). Bring your Canadian PR card or Confirmation of Permanent Residence.
2. Open the accounts. Ask a licensed commercial bank to open an Emigrants' Rupee Account and an Emigrants' Transaction Rupee Account.
3. Collect your source documents. Deeds of sale, inheritance papers, gift documents and statements for foreign currency you already hold.
4. Check the limits. Ask the bank how much of your allowance you have used, and which Section 22 Order is in force.
5. Send to an account in your own name. Transfer to your Canadian account, and keep the bank's transfer advice.

Money you already hold in foreign currency in Sri Lanka, or current income such as a pension, does not use up your allowance. Tell your bank which part of your money falls in which group.

Worked example: selling a house before moving

Nimal gets Canadian permanent residence. He sells his house in Kandy for rupees.

1. He opens an Emigrants' Rupee Account and an Emigrants' Transaction Rupee Account at a licensed commercial bank.
2. The sale proceeds go into the Emigrants' Rupee Account, then to the transaction account.
3. The proceeds count against his migration allowance. While the Section 22 Order is in force, he can transfer up to USD 100,000 under the initial allowance.
4. He keeps the deed of sale and bank records to show his Canadian bank.

If the Order lapses or changes, the limit may change. He checks the DFE website before each transfer. Our guide for newcomers from Sri Lanka has more settlement tips.

Common questions

Sources

• Gazette 2493/37: Foreign Exchange (Fund Transfers Abroad by Emigrants) Regulations No. 2 of 2026
• Gazette 2493/38: Order under Section 22 of the Foreign Exchange Act (June 18, 2026)
• Gazette 2467/67: previous Section 22 Order (December 18, 2025)
• CBSL: Department of Foreign Exchange
• CBSA: Memorandum D19-14-1, Cross-border currency reporting
• FINTRAC: Financial transactions reported to FINTRAC

Checked against these sources on October 10, 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.