Sri Lankan order of precedence


The Order of Precedence in Sri Lanka the protocol list at which Sri Lankan government officials are seated according to their rank. This is not the list of succession.

Current Order of Precedence

  1. President of Sri Lanka
  2. Prime Minister of Sri Lanka
  3. Speaker of the Parliament
  4. Chief Justice of Sri Lanka
  5. # Leader of the Opposition
  6. # Ministers of the Cabinet of Sri Lanka
  7. # Field marshal
  8. # Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka
  9. Provincial Governors
  10. # Provincial Chief Ministers
  11. # State Ministers
  12. # Deputy Speaker of Parliament
  13. # Deputy Ministers
  14. # Deputy Chairman of Committees
  15. # Chief Government Whip
  16. Ambassadors and High Commissioners and Foreign Ministers and Envoys.
  17. Members of the Constitutional Council
  18. Attorney General of Sri Lanka
  19. # Supreme Court Judges
  20. # President of the Court of Appeal
  21. Judges of the Court of Appeal
  22. Members of the Parliament. There is no established order of precedence over members of parliament in general, although each party has its internal ranking.
  23. # Provincial Council Chairmen, Provincial Ministers and Leaders of the Opposition of Provincial Councils
  24. # Members of Provincial Councils
  25. Secretary to the President
  26. Secretary to the Prime Minister
  27. Secretary to the Cabinet of Ministers
  28. Auditor General of Sri Lanka
  29. # Secretaries of Cabinet Ministries/Senior Additional Secretaries to the President
  30. #* Secretary General of Parliament
  31. #* Chief of Staff of the Presidential Secretariat
  32. #* Chairmen of the Commissions
  33. #* Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration
  34. #* Chief Secretaries
  35. # Presidential Adviser
  36. # Deputy Secretary to the Treasury
  37. # Secretary General of the Constitutional Council
  38. # Chairmen of the University Grants Commission
  39. # Vice Chancellor appointed under the University Act
  40. # Secretaries of State Ministries
  41. # Additional Secretaries to the President
  42. Chief of the Defence Staff
  43. Heads of the Armed Forces, the Police and the Solicitor General
  44. * The Commander of the Army
  45. * The Commander of the Navy
  46. * The Commander of the Air Force
  47. * The [Inspector General of Sri Lanka Police|Police (Sri Lanka)|Inspector General] of the Police
  48. * Solicitor General
  49. * High Court Judges
  50. Visiting Sri Lankan High Commissioners, Ambassador and Charges de Affaires
  51. Additional Secretaries to the Prime Minister
  52. Additional Secretaries to the Ministries
  53. * Directors General
  54. * Commissioners General
  55. * Controllers General
  56. * Heads of Departments

Former Precedence Table for Ceylon

  1. The Governor-General of Ceylon or Officer Administering the Government
  2. The Prime Minister of Ceylon
  3. The Chief Justice of Ceylon
  4. The President of the Senate
  5. The Speaker of the House of Representatives
  6. Ministers of Cabinet rank
  7. Ambassadors and High Commissioners and Foreign Ministers and Envoys.
  8. Ministers not of Cabinet rank
  9. Attorney General
  10. Puisne Judges
  11. The Deputy President of the Senate, the Deputy Speaker; Parliamentary Secretaries, Deputy Chairman of Committees
  12. Members of the Senate in their order
  13. Members of the House of Representatives in their order
  14. The Chairman, Public Service Commission
  15. Members of the Public Service Commission and the Judicial Service Commission
  16. The Secretary of the Treasury
  17. The Permanent Secretaries; The Deputy Secretary of the Treasury
  18. Auditor General
  19. Commanding officers of Regular Ceylon Forces
  20. Members of Class I Grade I of the Ceylon Civil Service and Members of the Special Class of the Judicial Service
  21. Solicitor General
  22. Members of Class I Grade II of the Ceylon Civil Service; Heads of large Departments; Members of Class I Grade I of the Judicial Service; The Secretary to the Governor-General; The Secretary to the Prime Minister.
  23. The Clerk to the Senate
  24. The Clerk to the House of Representatives