Sri Lanka is facing a backlog of about 678,000 driving licences awaiting printing, with officials warning that the delay is continuing to grow because current production capacity is insufficient to meet demand.
The issue was examined by the Parliamentary Sectoral Oversight Committee on Infrastructure and Strategic Development, which instructed officials to conduct a full investigation into the delays affecting both driving licences and vehicle number plates. The committee has called for a comprehensive report within 45 days covering when the delays began, the administrative and technical factors involved, and the relevant tender and procurement processes.
The committee met in Parliament under the chairmanship of Member of Parliament S. M. Marikkar, where officials were questioned about the delays in issuing vehicle number plates. The committee instructed authorities to provide a detailed account of the causes of the delays, when the problems began, measures taken to address them, and the tender and procurement procedures connected with the issuance of number plates.
Officials told the committee that vehicle number plates had begun to be issued within 14 days for vehicles registered after 10 March 2026. The committee nevertheless ordered a broader investigation into the process to establish how the delays developed and the factors responsible for them.
The meeting also examined the continuing delay in the production of driving licences. Officials said approximately 678,000 licences are currently waiting to be printed. Existing printing capacity is about 4,600 licences a day, meaning that the backlog continues to increase rather than being cleared.
Authorities are planning to expand that capacity by installing two new printing machines by 15 October. Once operational, the additional equipment is expected to increase daily production capacity to about 8,200 driving licences.
The proposed expansion is intended to accelerate the processing of the accumulated licences, although the committee has also sought a detailed examination of the administrative and technical circumstances that contributed to the delays. The requested report is expected to cover the development of the problem as well as the procurement and tendering processes associated with the systems responsible for issuing the documents.
The committee’s investigation therefore covers both sides of the country’s vehicle documentation delays: the issuance of number plates and the production of driving licences. While officials told the committee that a 14-day process for number plates had begun for vehicles registered after 10 March, the much larger driving-licence backlog remains dependent on the planned increase in printing capacity.
The committee has given officials 45 days to submit the requested report, including details of the causes of the delays, administrative and technical factors, and the relevant procurement and tender procedures.
