A gazette notification has been issued amending the procedures and deadlines related to the payment of excise taxes and fees on liquor production.

The gazette, which came into effect today (28), has been issued by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, Economic Stabilization, and National Policies.

The new regulations state that every license holder must pay the required excise tax on or before the specified date, as outlined in Section 22 of the Excise Ordinance.

According to the gazette, if a license holder fails to make full payment of the due tax or fee within 30 days from the prescribed date, the bottling license of that licensee will be suspended.

The Excise Department stated that this regulation had not been implemented previously and that it has now been introduced as a new legal provision.

Furthermore, if a license holder fails to pay the due taxes or fees within 90 days of the specified date, all licenses held by that individual will be suspended, as per the new gazette.

Previously, the period of license suspension was six months, but the new regulations have reduced it to three months, the Excise Department said.

The department noted that the revision of the tax payment deadlines was made with the objective of minimizing excise tax evasion and ensuring greater compliance among license holders.