2025 Vote on Account: Revenue and expenditure - Revenue increase is less than the increase in primary expenditure

Abstract

On 6 December, Parliament approved the 2025 Vote on Account, allocating funds for the first four months of the year.

For January to April 2025, primary expenditure—which includes both recurring and capital spending but excludes interest payments—is budgeted at LKR 1,425 billion. This breaks down into LKR 425 billion for capital projects and LKR 1,000 billion for recurrent expenses. The government expects revenue of LKR 1,600 billion, resulting in a primary balance (revenue minus primary expenditure) of LKR 175 billion.

Compared to 2024, both expenditure and revenue have increased significantly. Primary expenditure for 2025 is projected to be LKR 454 billion (47%) higher than the LKR 971 billion spent during an average four-month* period in 2024. However, revenue is expected to grow by only LKR 400 billion (33%). This indicates that the primary balance expected for 2025 could be lower than what is achieved in 2024, extrapolating from the first four months of revenue and expenditure budgeted in the vote on account.