ETF R4 Form vs Form II: The Half-Yearly Return Explained
R1 employers file half-yearly Form II by 31 August and 28 February. R4 is monthly, not half-yearly return. Differences and relevant deadlines.
On this page
- R1, R4 and Form II at a glance
- Who must file, and from which month
- What the member schedule must show
- The two half-year periods and their due dates
- Filing electronically vs on paper
- Correcting a member's details after filing
- Do this automatically in Humanised
- Frequently asked questions
- Is the ETF R4 form the half-yearly return?
- What does "ETF R4 form excel" usually mean when people search for it?
- A member left during the half-year period, do I still include them on Form II?
- What if I have no employees to report for a period, do I still file a nil return?
- Is there a surcharge for filing Form II late, separate from the monthly payment surcharge?
- Do new joiners go on the half-year return for the month they started, or the whole period?
People search “ETF R4 form” looking for the half-yearly return. But R4 is actually a monthly remittance form. It is the one employers with fewer than 15 employees use to pay their 3% contribution each month. The real half-yearly return is Form II. Only employers on Form R1 file it. Those are employers with 15 or more employees, plus all government and semi-government bodies. The deadlines are January-June by 31 August, and July-December by 28 February.
R1, R4 and Form II at a glance
| Form | What it is | Who files it | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | Monthly contribution remittance form | Employers with 15+ employees, and all government/semi-government bodies | Every month |
| R4 | Monthly contribution remittance form, with member details on the form itself | Employers with fewer than 15 employees | Every month |
| Form II | Half-yearly return giving full member contribution details for the period | R1 employers only (not required if paying electronically, and not filed by R4 employers at all) | Twice a year |
Source: ETF Board, payment of contributions and downloads (etfb.lk), checked 20 September 2026.
Who must file, and from which month
Headcount decides the form, not the type of business. Once you reach 15 employees you move to R1. If you pay by paper rather than electronically, you also pick up the Form II half-yearly filing. The ETF employer guide says a move from R4 to R1 should start in January or July. It also says the Board should be told in advance. Once you have started on R1, you stay on R1 even if headcount later falls below 15.
What the member schedule must show
Form II lists, for the half-year, every member’s number and name. It also shows total earnings for each month, and the 3% contributed. It has to match the same total your monthly R1 filings already reported. Form II is a summary and cross-check, not a fresh calculation. If you submit your contributions through eservices.etfb.lk or a bank’s corporate portal, you do not need to separately file Form II. The member detail already arrives with each month’s electronic file.
The two half-year periods and their due dates
| Period | Due date |
|---|---|
| January to June | 31 August |
| July to December | 28 February (following year) |
Source: ETF Board, payment of contributions (etfb.lk), checked 20 September 2026.
Filing electronically vs on paper
Paying electronically removes the separate Form II obligation entirely for R1 employers. The same member-level detail that Form II would show is already in the monthly e-file. The ETF Board’s own notice sets a deadline. Employers with 15 or more staff have had to be fully electronic since the July 2026 contribution, due 31 August 2026. Those employers can no longer use cash, cheque or money order. So most R1 employers will stop filing a paper Form II, because they will not be paying on paper at all. See our guide on how to pay ETF online for the registration and upload steps.
Correcting a member’s details after filing
If a member’s earnings or contribution were misreported on a monthly R1/R4 file, or on Form II, contact the ETF Board’s contribution section. Send the correction and the supporting payroll record. Corrections to an already-submitted return are handled by the Board directly, not by re-submitting the whole form. Keep your own payroll report as the evidence trail for what changed and why.
Keeping this straight matters for your records generally. See our guide on HR reports every SME should review monthly. If a filing needs to go in person, see our directory of ETF offices in Sri Lanka. You can cross-check your own contribution totals with the EPF and ETF calculator before submitting either form.
Do this automatically in Humanised
Payroll software for Sri Lanka builds the R4 member schedule from the pay runs you have already approved. It builds the Form II schedule too, where that applies. So the half-yearly figures match what was paid monthly.
This is general payroll guidance. Every case is different. For your own case, speak to a payroll practitioner or a lawyer.
Frequently asked questions
Is the ETF R4 form the half-yearly return?
No. R4 is the monthly remittance form used by employers with fewer than 15 employees. The half-yearly return is Form II, and only R1 employers (15 or more employees) file it.
What does “ETF R4 form excel” usually mean when people search for it?
Most searches for an Excel or PDF version of “the R4 form” want the monthly remittance template, not a half-yearly return template. Get the current version from etfb.lk/downloads/. Do not use an old copy from a third-party site.
A member left during the half-year period, do I still include them on Form II?
Yes. Include them for the months they were actually employed and contributed to within that half-year, with their leaving date noted.
What if I have no employees to report for a period, do I still file a nil return?
Check the ETF Board’s forms and instructions for the current nil-return requirement. This was not confirmed on the ETF Board’s published pages. Treat it as a question for your regional ETF office, not an assumption either way.
Is there a surcharge for filing Form II late, separate from the monthly payment surcharge?
The ETF Board applies surcharges to late contributions on a 5%-to-50% scale by length of delay (ETF employer guide). We could not confirm whether a late Form II filing carries its own penalty, as opposed to a late payment. The ETF Board’s published pages do not say. Check this with the Board before treating it as fact.
Do new joiners go on the half-year return for the month they started, or the whole period?
Only for the months from their start date onward within that half-year. The same rule applies to leavers.
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