Guide7 min read4 views
Updated 9 November 2026 · Written by the Wahanaya.lk team
Yes, but you must first settle the outstanding lease balance with your finance company and get them to release their absolute ownership claim on the CR book before you can transfer the car to a buyer.
Yes, you can, but not in the normal way. As long as your finance company is still registered as the "absolute owner" on your vehicle's CR book, the car is not fully yours to transfer. You have to settle the outstanding balance (or arrange for the buyer's money to do it), get the finance company to release its claim with a letter to the Department of Motor Traffic (DMT), and only then sign over the vehicle using the normal transfer form.
Under a finance lease in Sri Lanka, the finance company is the "absolute owner" of the vehicle and you are the registered owner/hirer who uses it day to day. This is written into the CR book itself — there's a separate entry naming the finance company as absolute owner, alongside your name as the person using the vehicle. Because of that entry, the DMT will not process a sale to a third party while the lease is still active, even though you're the one driving it and paying for it.
Write to your leasing company (or visit the branch) and ask for a written settlement figure, valid until a specific date. This figure covers:
Get this in writing before you agree a price with a buyer. The outstanding balance moves every month, so an old figure is not reliable.
This varies by finance company and by your specific facility agreement, so ask for the exact figure in writing rather than assuming a percentage. Under the Finance Leasing Act, No. 56 of 2000, any rebate on the future interest you'd otherwise have paid is largely at the finance company's discretion, guided by directions the Central Bank of Sri Lanka issues from time to time. In practice this means two lessees on similar vehicles can get different early-settlement terms from the same company. Ask directly: "If I settle this today, exactly what do I pay, and is there an early-settlement charge?" and get the answer on paper before you commit to a buyer.
You need a letter, on the finance company's letterhead, addressed to the DMT, asking it to cancel the absolute ownership/lease entry and confirming your obligations have been fully settled. Finance companies only issue this once the settlement amount has actually cleared in their account — not on the day you pay, but once it reflects. Ask your finance company how many working days this takes, and build that into your timeline before you promise a buyer a handover date.
Once the DMT has processed the cancellation and the CR book no longer shows the finance company as absolute owner, you proceed exactly as any private seller would. You and the buyer complete the MTA6 transfer form (four copies), along with MTA8, and submit them with the CR book, a valid revenue licence, and NIC copies of both parties at a DMT transfer branch, district office, Divisional Secretariat, or — if eligible — the one-day service counter at DMT Head Office. For the general document checklist every seller needs regardless of leasing, see our existing guide on what documents you need to sell a car in Sri Lanka.
There's no single rule, but the safer sequence protects both sides: either you settle the lease yourself first (using your own funds or an advance from the buyer specifically earmarked for settlement), or the buyer's payment is split so the settlement amount goes straight to the finance company and only the balance comes to you. What you should avoid is collecting the buyer's full payment, failing to actually clear the lease, and leaving the buyer unable to register the car in their name. This exact scenario is a well-known fraud pattern in Sri Lanka's used car market — sellers who take a buyer's money and don't settle the leasing company, leaving the buyer with a car they can't transfer.
The main risks are timing and trust. A buyer who hands over cash before the absolute ownership entry is cancelled has no real protection if you don't follow through. A seller who lets a buyer take the car before the lease is settled risks the finance company repossessing a vehicle that's technically still theirs. Build in a short overlap: settle first, confirm the DMT has processed the release, then transfer and hand over keys on the same visit if possible. If either side is nervous about timing, meet at the finance company branch or the DMT office rather than handling money and keys separately.
Before you list the car, read our safety tips for selling privately, browse comparable listings under vehicles to sense-check your price, and post your ad on post an ad once the lease position is sorted. If your situation is unusual — joint lessees, a vehicle close to full term, or a finance company that's slow to respond — ask in the Wahanaya forum, where other sellers who've been through the same process can share what worked for them.
When a buyer pays through a lease or bank loan, their finance company sends an approved valuer to inspect your car and registers itself as absolute owner on the CR book before you get paid, so expect extra paperwork and a short delay versus a cash sale.
Wahanaya.lk team8 min read
The safest payment is a bank transfer or bank draft you verify yourself by checking your own banking app or calling your bank — never a screenshot the buyer sends you. Don't hand over the CR book, keys or signed MTA 6 form until the money has actually settled in your account.
Wahanaya.lk team7 min read
Yes — the DMT's ownership-transfer system checks that your vehicle's VET (emission test) certificate and revenue licence are both in date before it lets the transfer go through, so renew an expired VET before you sell, unless your vehicle is exempt.
Wahanaya.lk team7 min read
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