Sri Lanka’s official remittances experienced a significant increase of 31.1% in January 2026, reaching US$751.1 million, according to data from the central bank. This upward trend has continued from the previous year.
In January, the inflows from foreign workers followed a record-breaking monthly remittance in December of the previous year, which also marked a historical annual high of US$8,076.2 million in worker remittances.
The rise in worker remittances is attributed to a larger segment of Sri Lanka’s labor force seeking employment abroad, as the nation recovers from the unprecedented economic crisis of 2022. Official data highlights that worker remittances remain the top source of foreign exchange revenue for the country, which is still on the path to recovery.
The continuous rise in remittances follows the central bank’s decision to abandon a parallel exchange rate regime, encouraging many expatriates to shift away from informal money transfer methods like Undiyal and Hawala.
In response to the economic challenges, Sri Lanka has been actively promoting the migration of more skilled professionals to generate higher foreign exchange earnings since the country declared bankruptcy in 2022.
Previously, in 2021, worker remittances through official channels saw a sharp decline as many expatriates opted for informal money transfer routes, which offered more favorable rates than formal banking channels. This shift was driven by the Central Bank’s actions to print money to sterilize interventions and maintain a low policy rate, leading to parallel exchange rates outside the formal banking system.
From April 2022, the Central Bank implemented unprecedented interest rate hikes, which tempered credit growth and reduced the need for money printing to sustain low rates. Subsequently, the bank adopted a dovish monetary policy stance. (Colombo/February 07/2026)
