Sri Lanka Government Service Guides

Start here if you need to apply for a Sri Lankan passport or NIC, get a police clearance certificate (police report), renew a driving license, or register a business. Each guide gives you the current fee (the price), the documents to bring, the steps in order and the office to go to. We check every guide against the department that runs the service and show the date we last checked it. LankaSolve is not a government site, so if a department's own notice says something different, the notice wins.

Which guide do I need?

Find your situation in the list. Each one links to the guide that covers it, and every fact here is also on that guide.

• Going abroad to work, study or migrate. Start with the Sri Lanka passport application guide. It covers a new passport and a renewal. If the visa, employer or university also asks for a police clearance, use the police clearance certificate guide. For visas and foreign jobs the certificate comes from Police Headquarters, not your local station.
  As of 16 Oct 2026, Sri Lanka Police has paused online applications. For now you apply at a police station instead.
• A passport in one day. The One-Day (urgent) service runs only at the Battaramulla Head Office. The passport price and documents are in the passport guide.
• A lost passport. Get a police complaint report first. The passport guide lists the rest.
• Turning 15. Every Sri Lankan citizen must apply for an NIC at 15. The NIC guide (new, lost and One-Day Service) shows the forms and documents.
• A lost or damaged NIC. For a lost NIC, get a police complaint report first, then follow the NIC guide. To see how the day goes, read NIC One-Day Service at Battaramulla: a first-hand account.
• A police report for a job in Sri Lanka. A certificate from your local police station is for use inside Sri Lanka only. Foreign visas won't accept it. See the police clearance certificate guide.
• A driving license about to expire. Get your NTMI medical certificate first. It must be less than 6 months old. Then book a DMT appointment. The driving license renewal guide has the fees and the offices.
• Starting a business. A sole proprietorship or partnership is registered with your province (in the Western Province, through a Divisional Secretariat, for example). A private limited company is registered nationally through eROC. See the business and company registration guide.

Identity & travel documents

Driving

Getting your first license? Practise for the written test with the free driving license mock exam, or read the driving license exam paper with answers.

Business

Registering for tax as well? Registering a business and registering for VAT are separate steps. The VAT calculator shows the 18% rate and when VAT registration applies.

Working abroad

Vehicles

Work & retirement

Want to know what these offices are like in person, not just the official steps? Read our first-hand What to Expect accounts, written after real visits.

Need a government service that isn't listed here? The Government Information Centre at gic.gov.lk lists services across government organisations.