Last updated: 11 September 2026
1. Introduction
This Refund Policy sets out the basis on which the Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (“SLID”, “we”, “us” or “our”) considers and processes refunds for membership subscriptions, event and programme registrations, and any other payment made through slid.lk. It applies to all payments received by SLID, whether made by bank or online transfer or by credit or debit card through our payment gateway.
By making a payment to SLID you confirm that you have read and accepted this Policy. This Policy should be read together with our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
2. How Refunds Are Issued
All approved refunds are credited back to the original payment method used for the transaction. Where a payment was made by credit or debit card, the refund will be processed back to the same card through our payment gateway. Where a payment was made by bank or online transfer, the refund will be remitted to the bank account from which the payment was received. SLID does not issue refunds in cash, to a different card, to a third party’s account, or as credit to any other payment instrument.
Once SLID has approved and submitted a refund, the amount is typically credited within seven (7) to fourteen (14) working days, depending on the processing times of the payment gateway and of your card issuer or bank. Any delay beyond that point is a matter for your card issuer or bank, and SLID has no control over it.
Refunds are made in Sri Lankan Rupees (LKR), being the currency in which the original payment was charged. Where your card was issued outside Sri Lanka, the amount you finally receive may differ from the amount charged because of exchange-rate movements between the date of payment and the date of refund. Any such difference, and any bank, correspondent bank or currency conversion charge applied by your own bank or card issuer, is not recoverable from SLID.
3. Currency and Pricing
All membership fees, event fees and other charges displayed on this website are quoted in Sri Lankan Rupees (LKR) and are charged in LKR. No other currency is accepted.
4. Membership Subscriptions
A membership application passes through three stages: verification by the SLID Secretariat, then payment, and finally approval by the SLID Governing Council, which meets on the second Tuesday of every other month. No payment is requested until an application has been verified, and verification is not itself an approval of membership. A membership begins only once the Governing Council has approved the application.
Applications that the Governing Council does not approve are refunded in full. Because payment is taken before the Council meets, an application may be declined after the applicant has paid. Where that happens, the entrance fee and subscription paid are refunded in full to the original payment method, and the applicant does not need to request it. SLID initiates the refund once the Council’s decision has been recorded, and the amount is credited within the period stated in Section 2.
Where a membership has been approved by the Governing Council and activated, any subsequent request for a refund is considered on a case-by-case basis and decided by the Governing Council at its meeting. There is no automatic entitlement to a refund of an activated membership subscription. In reaching its decision, the Governing Council will take into account the circumstances giving rise to the request, the period of membership already elapsed, and the member benefits and resources that have already been accessed.
Where the Governing Council approves a refund, it may approve the full amount or a pro-rated portion of it, at its discretion. The decision of the Governing Council is final. As the Governing Council meets on the second Tuesday of every other month, a member should expect a decision on a membership refund request to take up to one meeting cycle, and SLID will confirm the outcome in writing.
Membership subscriptions are personal to the member and are not transferable to another person or organisation.
5. Event and Programme Registrations
Where a delegate wishes to cancel a paid registration for an SLID event, programme or training session:
- Cancellation received seven (7) or more calendar days before the event date: a full refund of the registration fee will be made.
- Cancellation received less than seven (7) calendar days before the event date: no refund will be made, and the full registration fee remains payable.
- Non-attendance without notice (no-show): no refund will be made.
All cancellation requests must be made in writing to the Secretariat at secretariat@slid.lk and must quote the booking reference shown on your confirmation email. The date on which SLID receives your written request is the date used to determine which of the above applies; a verbal or telephone cancellation is not effective until confirmed in writing.
6. Substitution of Delegates
SLID recognises that a director’s diary can change at short notice. At any time before an event begins — including inside the seven-day window when a refund is no longer available — you may substitute another person in place of the registered delegate at no additional charge, by writing to the Secretariat with the replacement delegate’s name and email address. Where the original delegate was charged the member rate and the replacement is not a current SLID member, the difference between the member and non-member rate becomes payable before the substitution is confirmed.
7. Cancellation or Postponement by SLID
If SLID cancels an event, every registered delegate will be offered the choice of a full refund of the registration fee or a transfer of the fee to a future SLID event of equivalent value.
If SLID postpones an event or changes its date, your registration will automatically be transferred to the new date. If you are unable to attend on the new date, you may request a full refund by writing to the Secretariat within seven (7) calendar days of our notification of the change.
Where an event is moved between an in-person and an online format, or where a speaker or facilitator is substituted, the event is treated as proceeding as planned and the normal cancellation terms in Section 5 apply.
8. Duplicate, Failed and Erroneous Payments
Where a payment has been charged twice for the same membership or booking, or where a technical error at the gateway has resulted in an incorrect amount being charged, SLID will refund the duplicate or excess amount in full to the original payment method. Please report any such transaction to finance@slid.lk with the date, amount and reference of the payment, and we will investigate and resolve it promptly.
Where a payment fails or is left pending at the gateway, no membership is activated and no event seat is confirmed. If your card or bank account has nonetheless been debited for a failed transaction, the amount is normally reversed automatically by the payment gateway; if it is not, please contact us and we will take the matter up with the gateway on your behalf.
9. Non-Refundable Items
The following are not refundable in any circumstances:
- application processing or administrative charges, where separately levied;
- bank charges, correspondent bank fees, card issuer fees and currency conversion losses;
- sponsorship, advertising and exhibition fees, once the relevant publication has gone to print or the event has taken place;
- the value of members-only publications, reports or digital resources that have already been downloaded or accessed;
- donations and voluntary contributions.
10. How to Request a Refund
All refund requests must be made in writing by the person who made the original payment, and should be sent to secretariat@slid.lk (copying finance@slid.lk for payment-related matters). Please include:
- your full name and, where applicable, your SLID membership number;
- the booking or application reference shown on your confirmation email;
- the date and amount of the payment and the method used;
- the reason for the refund request.
SLID will acknowledge your request within three (3) working days. Event refund requests falling within Section 5 are decided by the Secretariat. Membership refund requests are referred to the Governing Council in accordance with Section 4. In every case, the outcome will be confirmed to you in writing.
11. Chargebacks
If you believe a charge is incorrect, please contact SLID first so that we can investigate and, where appropriate, refund it directly. Raising a chargeback or payment dispute with your card issuer without first contacting us delays resolution and may result in the suspension of your membership or booking until the dispute is concluded. Where a chargeback is found to have been raised without valid grounds, SLID reserves the right to recover the associated gateway and bank charges from the member or delegate.
12. Changes to This Policy
SLID may revise this Refund Policy from time to time. The version published on this page at the date of your payment is the version that applies to that payment. Any revision will be posted here with an updated “Last updated” date.
13. Contact Us
For any question relating to refunds, cancellations or payments, please contact:
The Secretariat
Sri Lanka Institute of Directors
Cinnamon Grand Colombo
No. 77, Galle Road
Colombo 03
Sri Lanka
General: secretariat@slid.lk
Payment related: finance@slid.lk
General telephone: 076 738 3050
Payment related telephone: 076 545 4279