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Net to Gross Salary Calculator for Sri Lanka - EPF and APIT

Tell the calculator the monthly take-home pay you want and it finds the gross salary an employer has to offer.

Maintained by Hirantha Sandaruwan Lakshan. Rules checked 13 October 2026 against Inland Revenue Department notice PN/IT/2025-01 and 4 more sources.

About this tool

It works backwards from the same function the net salary calculator uses: 8 per cent EPF and APIT income tax under the 2025/26 bands, with Rs. 150,000 a month tax-free. The two tools share their code, so they cannot disagree. Your figures never leave your browser.

How it works

Going from gross to net is a forward calculation: take off 8 per cent EPF, then APIT on the whole gross, and what is left is the take-home pay. Going back is harder because the tax is charged in bands, so the gross is not a fixed multiple of the net. This tool inverts the forward calculation itself instead of using a separate formula for each band.

Take-home pay always rises when gross rises, because each extra rupee of gross loses at most 44 per cent (8 per cent EPF and the 36 per cent top rate), leaving at least 56 per cent. So exactly one gross figure gives a given take-home pay, and a bisection search finds it: it keeps halving a range around the answer until the net pay from the gross matches your target to a tiny fraction of a cent. The gross is shown to the cent, and the take-home from that rounded figure is within one cent of your target.

The rules are imported from the net salary calculator, not copied: 8 per cent employee EPF, APIT on the whole gross with Rs. 150,000 a month relieved, then 6 per cent on the next Rs. 83,333, 18, 24 and 30 per cent on the next three bands of Rs. 41,667 and 36 per cent above that (the yearly bands of the Inland Revenue Department divided by twelve). The relief is the 2025/26 figure and the 2026/27 figure is unconfirmed. Your EPF share is not deducted before tax in this estimate.

Use the optional boxes for fixed cash pay that carries no EPF, such as regular overtime, and for deductions such as a loan instalment. The tool then solves for the EPF-able pay, which is the part of the salary that EPF is worked out on, and shows the employer's 12 per cent EPF and 3 per cent ETF on top as the cost of the job.

Worked examples

Take-home pay of Rs. 200,000

The gross needed is Rs. 222,093.02. The EPF is Rs. 17,767.44 and the APIT is Rs. 4,325.58 (6 per cent on the Rs. 72,093.02 above Rs. 150,000). Rs. 222,093.02 less those two is Rs. 200,000.00.

Take-home pay of Rs. 500,000

The gross needed is exactly Rs. 725,000. The EPF is Rs. 58,000 and the APIT is Rs. 167,000, because every band up to 36 per cent applies. APIT takes about 23 per cent of the gross and the EPF 8 per cent.

Take-home pay of Rs. 100,000

The gross needed is Rs. 108,695.65. That is under the Rs. 150,000 monthly relief, so no tax is due and only the 8 per cent EPF of Rs. 8,695.65 comes off.

Gross salary needed for a take-home pay (all of the gross is EPF-able, no other deductions)

Take-home pay a monthGross pay neededEPF (8%)APIT
Rs. 100,000Rs. 108,695.65Rs. 8,695.65Rs. 0.00
Rs. 150,000Rs. 163,953.49Rs. 13,116.28Rs. 837.21
Rs. 200,000Rs. 222,093.02Rs. 17,767.44Rs. 4,325.58
Rs. 250,000Rs. 288,970.59Rs. 23,117.65Rs. 15,852.94
Rs. 300,000Rs. 367,857.14Rs. 29,428.57Rs. 38,428.57
Rs. 500,000Rs. 725,000.00Rs. 58,000.00Rs. 167,000.00

Frequently asked questions

How do you convert net salary to gross in Sri Lanka?

Work backwards from the take-home pay you want: find the gross for which gross minus 8 per cent EPF minus APIT equals that figure. Because APIT is charged in bands, this tool searches for the gross by repeated halving. For a take-home of Rs. 200,000 the gross is Rs. 222,093.02.

Why is the gross so much higher than the net?

Every rupee above Rs. 150,000 a month carries 6 to 36 per cent tax on top of the 8 per cent EPF, so to take home one more rupee you need more than one more rupee of gross. In the top band an extra Rs. 100 of take-home needs about Rs. 178.57 more gross.

Is the answer exact?

The search stops when the take-home from the gross matches your target to far less than a cent, and the gross is then rounded to the cent. The take-home from the rounded gross is within one cent of your target. The tests check this by taking a gross, working out its take-home and converting it back.

Are these the rates for 2026/27?

They are the rates in force from the 2025/26 year of assessment, set by the Inland Revenue (Amendment) Act, No. 2 of 2025. I checked on 13 October 2026 and could not confirm any change to the relief or the bands for 2026/27, but I could not rule one out. The Inland Revenue (Amendment) Act, No. 11 of 2026 was certified on 3 June 2026. I read its text and a KPMG summary of it: it changes capital gains tax rates and many compliance rules, and it leaves the personal relief and the progressive rates as they were. A Budget measure or a new Inland Revenue Department notice could still apply to 2026/27. For payroll, use the Inland Revenue Department's current APIT tables.

Does the employer's EPF and ETF change the gross?

No. The employer's 12 per cent EPF and 3 per cent ETF are paid on top of the gross pay, not taken from it. They are shown as part of what the job costs the employer.

What if part of my pay carries no EPF?

Enter it as other cash pay. It is taxed, but no EPF is taken from it, and the tool solves for the EPF-able pay that has to go with it to reach your take-home. If the other cash pay alone already gives more than your target, the tool says so.

Why does my payslip differ from this estimate?

Payroll uses the Inland Revenue Department's monthly tables, may include benefits, other income or other reliefs, and may treat the EPF-able pay differently. Your payslip is what counts.

Updated Oct 13, 2026