How to Pay EPF Online in Sri Lanka: Employer Guide (2026)

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Before you start: what you need
Paying EPF online, step by step
Step 1: Register for EPF Online Services
Step 2: Collect your login credentials
Step 3: Prepare the month’s contribution details
Step 4: Generate the payment voucher
Step 5: Make the payment through your bank
Step 6: Print your Form C confirmation
Deadlines and surcharges
Paying by cheque or at the bank
Frequently asked questions
What is the deadline for EPF payments?
What happens if EPF is paid late?
Can EPF be paid at a bank branch?
Who do I write an EPF cheque to?

EPF contributions can be paid online through EPF Online Services (services.epf.lk, run by the EPF Department of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka), with the payment itself made through the internet-banking portal of a participating commercial bank, by direct debit, or over the counter using the system-generated payment voucher.

EPF cheques should be written in favour of: the Superintendent of the Employees’ Provident Fund.

Every Sri Lankan employer must remit EPF contributions — 8% deducted from the employee’s gross earnings plus 12% from the employer — every month, for every eligible employee. Miss the deadline and surcharges start at 5% and climb to 50%. This guide walks through the online payment route step by step, plus the deadlines, surcharges and the cheque route for employers who still pay manually. All statutory details below are per the EPF Department’s published guidance on epf.lk.

Before you start: what you need

Your EPF employer registration number — issued when you registered as an employer with the Department of Labour. It appears on every return and payment.
Member details for every employee — EPF member numbers, full names and NIC numbers.
The month’s contribution schedule — each employee’s total earnings for the month, the 8% employee deduction, and your 12% employer contribution. (Payroll software generates this automatically from your pay run.)
An EPF Online Services account — see Step 1 below if you don’t have one yet. Employers with 50 or more employees must submit e-Returns; smaller employers can use the online system too, and are encouraged to.

Paying EPF online, step by step

Step 1: Register for EPF Online Services

Download the EPF Online Services registration form from epf.lk (the September 2025 form is current), complete it with your employer number, contact person, a company email address and your preferred mode of payment, and submit it to the EPF Department directly or through a participating commercial bank. The Department only accepts follow-up correspondence from the registered email address.

The EPF Department issues a system-generated PIN document with your username and password, collected from the e-Collection Division or delivered by registered post. Log in at the employer login and change the password on first use.

Step 3: Prepare the month’s contribution details

Employers with fewer than 50 employees can generate the monthly contribution details inside the system. Employers with 50 or more employees prepare a contribution detail file in the EPF-specified format — most payroll systems export it — and upload it. The EPF Department advises submitting contribution and payment details at least five days before the last working day of the month.

Step 4: Generate the payment voucher

Once the system validates your data, it generates a payment voucher with a Payment ID — a reference built from your zone code, employer number, the contribution period (YYYYMM) and a submission number. This ID is what ties your bank payment back to your return.

Step 5: Make the payment through your bank

Pay by whichever mode you registered: (a) your bank’s online or corporate internet banking portal — select EPF as the biller and enter the Payment ID (participating banks include Bank of Ceylon, Commercial Bank, DFCC, HNB, NDB, People’s Bank, Sampath and Seylan); (b) a direct debit instruction, available to employers with 50 or more employees; or (c) over the counter at the bank with the payment voucher.

Step 6: Print your Form C confirmation

After the payment is reconciled against your return, the Print C Form option is enabled in the portal — print or save it as your record of the month’s contribution.

Deadlines and surcharges

EPF contributions for a given month must reach the EPF on or before the last working day of the following month — August salaries, for example, must be paid to EPF by the last working day of September. Late payments attract a surcharge on the contribution due, on this scale published by the EPF Department:

Period of delay	Surcharge on contribution
1 – 10 days	5%
11 days – 1 month	15%
1 – 3 months	20%
3 – 6 months	30%
6 – 12 months	40%
Over 12 months	50%

Paying by cheque or at the bank

Employers not using the online facility can still pay manually. Cheques and bank drafts must be drawn in favour of the Superintendent of the Employees’ Provident Fund, and are accepted with the completed Form C at any People’s Bank branch (cash is also accepted at the Bank of Ceylon Taprobane branch). Employers with fewer than 50 employees receive a pre-printed Form C by post each month from the EPF Department; it must be completed in triplicate — the original to EPF, one copy to your Labour Office, and one retained. Note that a 2% surcharge can apply for submitting incomplete details, so check the form carefully.

Frequently asked questions

What is the deadline for EPF payments?

Contributions for a month must reach the EPF on or before the last working day of the following month. The EPF Department recommends submitting online returns at least five days earlier to allow for validation.

What happens if EPF is paid late?

A surcharge is added to the contribution due, starting at 5% for a delay of 1–10 days and rising in bands to 50% for delays over 12 months. Persistent default can also lead to recovery action through the Labour Department.

Can EPF be paid at a bank branch?

Yes. Cheque payments with the completed Form C are accepted at any People’s Bank branch, and over-the-counter payment with the system-generated voucher is available at participating banks for online filers.

Who do I write an EPF cheque to?

Draw the cheque in favour of the Superintendent of the Employees’ Provident Fund. Post-dated cheques are not accepted, and it’s good practice to note your EPF employer number on the reverse.

Humanised generates your EPF contribution schedule, Form C data and bank-ready files automatically from each pay run — see our payroll software for Sri Lanka. Paying ETF too? Read the companion guide to ETF registration and online payment.

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