How to Become a Company Secretary in Sri Lanka 2026

To become a company secretary in Sri Lanka you must be a Sri Lankan citizen aged 18 or over, qualify as an Attorney-at-Law or a member of a recognised body such as CA Sri Lanka or the Institute of Chartered Corporate Secretaries of Sri Lanka (ICCSSL), and obtain a Certificate of Practice from the Registrar of Companies. Qualified in-house company secretaries typically earn about LKR 150,000 to 350,000 a month.

The rules come from the Companies Act No. 7 of 2007 and the Companies (Secretaries) Regulations, No. 1 of 2023. For pay detail, see our company secretary salary guide.

Steps to become a qualified company secretary

1. 1

   Understand what the law requires

   Section 221 of the Companies Act No. 7 of 2007 says every company must have a secretary, and section 222 leaves the secretary's qualifications to regulations. Those are now the Companies (Secretaries) Regulations, No. 1 of 2023, published in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2323/41 of 17 March 2023, which replaced the 1987 regulations.

   • Every company must have a secretary (section 221)
   • Qualifications are prescribed by regulations (section 222)
   • Current rules: Companies (Secretaries) Regulations, No. 1 of 2023
2. 2

   Choose a qualifying route

   To act as a qualified secretary you must be a Sri Lankan citizen aged 18 or over and either be an Attorney-at-Law of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka or a member of one of the recognised professional bodies. Pick the route that fits your background.

   • Attorney-at-Law of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka
   • Member of CA Sri Lanka (Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka)
   • Member of the Institute of Chartered Corporate Secretaries of Sri Lanka (ICCSSL)
   • Member of CIMA (UK), CMA Sri Lanka, or the Chartered Governance Institute UK and Ireland
3. 3

   Complete the professional qualification

   If you are not already a lawyer or accountant, the specialist route is ICCSSL. It began in 1953 as a branch of the UK Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators and was re-established locally in 1985. It offers a Postgraduate Diploma in Chartered Corporate Secretarial Practice, along with diploma, certificate and CPD programmes, leading to Associate and later Fellow membership.

   • ICCSSL: Postgraduate Diploma in Chartered Corporate Secretarial Practice
   • Law route: LLB or Sri Lanka Law College, then enrolment as Attorney-at-Law
   • Accounting route: CA Sri Lanka, CIMA or CMA membership
4. 4

   Gain practical secretarial experience

   Most people learn the work as a secretarial assistant or executive in a corporate secretarial firm, a law firm or the company secretarial unit of a listed company. You will prepare board and shareholder minutes, maintain statutory registers and file annual returns and changes with the Registrar.

   • Board papers, minutes and resolutions
   • Share registers, transfers and annual returns
   • Filing with the Registrar through the eROC online system
5. 5

   Get a Certificate of Practice from the Registrar of Companies

   Qualified individuals must obtain a Certificate of Practice from the Registrar-General of Companies. You register as a secretary through the Department of the Registrar of Companies' eROC system, upload your signed application with professional and educational certificates and evidence of experience, pay online, and wait for approval. Secretarial acts done by someone without a valid Certificate of Practice are invalid under the regulations.

   • Register as a secretary on eROC and upload your documents
   • Declare that you are not disqualified (for example, of unsound mind or an undischarged insolvent)
   • Renew each year and keep up continuing professional development
6. 6

   Work in-house or set up a secretarial practice

   Qualified secretaries work in-house for listed companies, banks and groups, or run corporate secretarial firms serving many private companies. A registered firm can itself act as secretary if the people responsible hold Certificates of Practice. You cannot be secretary of a company whose accounts you audit.

   • In-house company secretary or head of corporate secretarial
   • Partner or owner of a corporate secretarial firm
   • Board governance and compliance roles

Qualifying routes compared

Company secretary salary in Sri Lanka

SalaryLK editorial estimates, monthly gross. Secretarial firms also earn fees per client company.

Related careers: how to become a lawyer, how to become an accountant, chartered accountant salary, corporate lawyer salary and legal advisor salary.

Who cannot be a company secretary

• A person adjudged by a competent court to be of unsound mind.
• An undischarged insolvent or bankrupt.
• A person convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude, subject to the regulations.
• The auditor of the same company.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources

1. Companies Act No. 7 of 2007 - Parliament of Sri Lanka
2. Companies (Secretaries) Regulations, No. 1 of 2023 (Gazette Extraordinary 2323/41) - Department of Government Printing
3. eROC user guide: registration of secretaries - Department of the Registrar of Companies
4. Institute of Chartered Corporate Secretaries of Sri Lanka - ICCSSL
5. How to appoint a company secretary in Sri Lanka - BizAdvisor.lk
6. Do you need a qualified company secretary? - anandasirisena.lk