Wise in Sri Lanka: dollars in, rupees out
Wise is the usual way to bring US LLC income home. Your LLC’s Wise Business account receives dollars from Mercury for free, converts them at the mid-market rate and sends rupees to any Sri Lankan bank account. From a USD balance it costs about 0.46% plus $1.36 per transfer, and it usually arrives the same working day.
Written by Kaveesha Mallawaarachchi, founder of Entryly. Facts checked .
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Where Wise fits in the route
With a US LLC, your money travels in three hops. Stripe pays out to Mercury in dollars. Mercury sends the dollars to your LLC’s Wise Business account by ACH, which is free on both sides. Wise then converts them to rupees and pays them into your Sri Lankan bank account.
| Stop | What happens | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Your client | Pays your invoice by US card | $1,000.00 |
| Stripe | Card fee, 2.9% + 30¢ | −$29.30 |
| Mercury | Receives the payout, sends it to Wise by ACH for free | $970.70 |
| Wise | Converts to rupees and sends (0.46% + $1.36) | −$5.83 |
| Your Sri Lankan bank | At 1 USD = 332.55 LKR | LKR 320,868 |
Fees checked 2026-11-04. International cards add 1.5% and currency conversion adds 1% at Stripe. Sri Lankan income tax isn’t included.
Wise converts at the mid-market rate, the rate you see on Google, and shows its fee separately before you send. That’s why the total is usually lower than letting a bank convert a USD wire for you.
Opening Wise Business for your LLC
You open Wise Business for your US company, not as an individual. Wise asks for your company details and verifies you as the owner with your passport. It decides at sign-up whether it can support your business, based on the company, its owners and what it does.
Entryly can set up Wise Business for your LLC as a $31 add-on when you form your company, so the details match your LLC documents exactly.
What it costs
Wise charges a percentage of the amount plus a small fixed fee. For a transfer from a USD balance to a Sri Lankan bank account, the quote on 4 November 2026 was 0.46% + $1.36.
| You send | Wise fee | Share of the transfer |
|---|---|---|
| $200 | $2.28 | 1.14% |
| $1,000 | $5.96 | 0.60% |
| $5,000 | $24.36 | 0.49% |
Because of the fixed fee, larger, less frequent transfers cost less overall than many small ones. Wise shows the exact fee and rate before you confirm.
Limits and timing
According to Wise’s own guide to LKR transfers:
- You can send up to LKR 4.98 million per transfer and LKR 5 million per day.
- You need the recipient’s full name, bank and branch, and an account number of 6–15 digits.
- Once Wise has converted your money, it usually arrives the same working day. The conversion itself can take up to 2 working days.
Rupees now, or dollars for later?
Converting straight to rupees through Wise is simplest for day-to-day income. If you want to keep some earnings in dollars, there’s another option: send a USD wire from Mercury to a foreign currency account at your Sri Lankan bank. Mercury doesn’t charge for USD wires, but intermediary and receiving banks may take a fee, so ask your bank before you start.
Tax and records
Money arriving from abroad is still income in Sri Lanka. Since 1 April 2025, income from services you provide to clients abroad and receive in foreign currency is taxed at up to 15% for individuals. Keep your Wise and Mercury statements: they show what you earned and when it reached Sri Lanka, which your accountant will need.
Want us to set this up for you?
We file your US LLC, get your EIN and help you apply for Mercury and Stripe. From $160, paid in rupees with Dialog Genie or a bank transfer. Your price is locked when you pay.
Sources
- Wise: guide to LKR transfers
- Wise: USD to LKR pricing
- Wise: can my business use Wise?
- Mercury: pricing
- Sunday Times: tax on freelancers earning foreign currency (2 Mar 2025)
Published . This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice.