Sri Lanka remittances rose sharply in September 2025, with workers’ transfers reaching USD 695.7 million — up nearly 25% from a year earlier — helping push nine-month inflows to USD 5.81 billion and strengthening the country’s foreign-exchange position.
Overseas remittances hit $695.7m in September as year-to-date inflows top $5.8bn, bolstering forex reserves.
Sri Lanka remittances delivered a strong boost to the economy in 2025 as migrant worker transfers climbed sharply in recent months, Central Bank of Sri Lanka figures show. In September alone, remittances totalled USD 695.7 million, compared with USD 555.6 million in September 2024, marking an almost 25 percent year-on-year rise. Over the first nine months of 2025, cumulative inflows reached USD 5.81 billion, up from USD 4.84 billion in the same period last year, a near 20 percent increase that has materially supported foreign-exchange liquidity.
The bulk of remittance inflows continues to come from Sri Lankans employed across the Middle East, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Officials and industry analysts say higher wage receipts abroad, greater employment uptake in key destination markets and improved remittance channels have helped drive the uptick. The growth in these worker transfers has a direct stabilising effect on the balance of payments by providing a steady source of foreign currency for households, businesses and imports.
Remittances are widely recognised as a resilient segment of Sri Lanka’s external accounts because they are durable, broadly dispersed and tend to rise when domestic labour markets tighten. Policy makers note the importance of preserving convenient and low-cost transfer corridors, encouraging formal channels and leveraging digital payment solutions to sustain momentum. Greater use of formal remittance channels also improves transparency and reduces dependence on costlier informal routes.
The recent surge in remittances is expected to underpin household consumption, ease foreign-currency constraints for importers and help the central bank manage reserve buffers more effectively. While inflows alone cannot replace the need for broader structural reforms and export growth, the improvement in worker transfers provides policymakers valuable breathing room to pursue fiscal and monetary objectives without unduly pressuring exchange rates.
Looking ahead, maintaining the gains will require continuing engagement with diaspora communities, facilitating easier transfer mechanisms, and monitoring global labour market trends that affect migrant earnings. For now, the robust performance of Sri Lanka remittances in 2025 stands out as one of the positive macroeconomic developments of the year, offering tangible support to the island’s external position and households that depend on overseas income.