Abstract: The potential of lignin is huge mainly in refining into biofuels and useful chemicals. Tropical countries have large reserve of biomass; however, lignin is underutilized. Hence, this paper aims to evaluate the lignin potential from biomass and current utilization level in tropical countries such as Brazil, Africa, and Southeast Asia. This paper relevant information is derived from multiple sources, included papers from ISI and Scopus indexed journals, international databases, and online patent search engine. In short, Brazil, has the largest lignin potential, mainly from sugarcane industry, and the highest lignin utilization level at TRL8. Africa had limited information and the least reported amount of studies on biomass available in the studied regions. Southeast Asia countries have oil palm and sugarcane as their largest lignin sources, and a TRL4 lignin utilization level. In Malaysia, oil palm refinery residues are the largest sources of lignin, which are readily to be extracted and processed into value-added products. Lignin utilization industry is also supported by some government policies. In this case, integrated biorefinery is a promising approach in achieving feasible conversion and utilization of lignin in Malaysia, where it adds value to various agricultures wastes produced, while also reducing the waste disposal problems. Graphic Abstract: Figure not available: see fulltext.. © 2020, Springer Nature B.V.