Sri Lankan Cricketers Contest Tax Dispute, Agree to Temporary Settlement:

Sri Lankan cricketers have challenged their tax status as employees, reaching a temporary settlement to pause past tax collection while future taxes are deducted.

Sri Lankan Cricketers Challenge Employee Tax Status in Court of Appeal

Saloni Kumari

Jun 5, 2025

Last update on Jun 5, 2025

Sri Lankan Cricketers Contest Tax Dispute, Agree to Temporary Settlement Cricketers of Sri Lanka have approached the Court of Appeal for an income tax dispute between Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and the Department of Inland Revenue (IRD). The case was registered in March by both male and female cricket players. They are asking for a decision that they are not employees of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), but instead work as independent professionals for tax reasons. Well-known players, Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Chamari Atapattu, and Anushka Sanjeewani, have requested the court to declare them as individual service providers. The cricketers position is supported by the legal team of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). However, cricketers are considered employees under the Inland Revenue Act if a contract is signed with the SLC, according to the Solicitor Department of General. During the hearing on Tuesday, a temporary agreement was made. According to this deal, the IRD will start deducting Advance Personal Income Tax (APIT) from the cricketers’ payments beginning in June. However, collecting APIT for the years 2022/23 and 2023/24 will be paused until the case is fully decided.

About Author

Saloni Kumari

Content Writer

Saloni is a Content Writer with 2+ years of experience at studycafe.in. She writes legal, taxation, and finance related content including GST, Income Tax etc. Skilled in translating complex judicial pronouncements and regulatory developments into clear, and reader-friendly articles. Experienced in covering judgements of ITAT, High Court, GSTAT, and news related to Income Tax, GST, and corporate law. She can be reached at [email protected].