Sri Lanka's Cabinet has approved an extra foreign exchange allowance of up to Rs. 2.5 million annually for government-sponsored overseas scholarship students to offset rising costs caused by rupee depreciation.

The Cabinet of Ministers has sanctioned an additional foreign exchange adjustment allowance for students enrolled in the government's overseas scholarship initiative, recognizing financial pressures created by recent currency fluctuations. The supplementary support of up to Rs. 2.5 million per year is intended to help undergraduate scholars manage increased expenses at internationally recognized foreign universities as the Sri Lankan rupee has weakened against major global currencies.

The scholarship programme, established under the 2025 Budget framework, provides financial backing for top-performing students from the 2024 GCE Advanced Level examination to pursue their first degree abroad. Under the main scheme structure, each recipient receives up to Rs. 20 million annually, with total support capped at Rs. 80 million across a four-year degree period. Thirty-two students were selected based on their examination performance, with nine having already departed Sri Lanka to commence their studies.

Office holders explained that the sharp depreciation of the rupee has substantially increased the costs of foreign currency transactions, rendering the original allocated funding inadequate for certain expenses incurred by scholarship recipients. The proposal for the exchange rate adjustment allowance was submitted by the Prime Minister in her capacity as Minister of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education, and subsequently received Cabinet approval to take effect.