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Entry Procedures & Visa Rules:
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Tourist Visa
Visa Facility Duration Fee
Multiple entry 15 days US$ 25 or equivalent convertible
currency
Multiple entry 30 days US$ 40 or equivalent convertible
currency
Multiple entry 90 days US$ 100 or equivalent convertible
currency
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Gratis (Free) Visa
Gratis visa for 30 days is available only for nationals of
SAARC countries. However, for extension of visa for SAARC
nationals, the rule is same as that of other nationals.
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Indian nationals do not require visa to enter into Nepal.
For Visa Extension:
Tourists can stay for a maximum of 150 days in a visa year (Jan
1 to Dec 31) extending the visa at the rate of 2 US $ per day.
However, a minimum amount of 30 US$ has to be paid for a period
of 15 days or less.
(For further information, please, contact Department of
Immigration, Maitighar, Impact Building, Kathmandu, Tel:
00977-1-4221996/ 4223590/ 4222453, Web:
www.immi.gov.np)
Custom Formalities:
Customs:
All baggage must be declared and cleared through the customs on
arrival at the entry point. Personal effects are permitted free
entry. Passengers arriving at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA)
without any dutiable goods can proceed through the Green Channel
for quick clearance without a baggage check. If you are carrying
dutiable articles, you have to pass through the Red Channel for
detailed customs clearance.
Import:
Apart from used personal belongings, visitors are allowed to
bring to Nepal free of duty: cigarettes (200 sticks) or cigars
(50 sticks), distilled liquor (one 1.15 liter bottle), and film
(15 rolls). You can also bring in the following articles free of
duty on condition that you take them out with you when you
leave: binoculars, movie or video camera, still camera, laptop
computer, and portable music system.
Export:
The export of antiques requires special certification from the
Department of Archeology, National Archive Building, Ram Shah
Path, Kathmandu. It is illegal to export objects over 100 years
old, such as sacred images, paintings, manuscripts that are
valued for culture and religious reasons. Visitors are advised
not to purchase such items as they are Nepal's cultural heritage
and belong here.
For more information on customs matters, contact the Chief
Customs Administrator, TIA Customs Office (Phone: 4470110,
4472266).
Foreign Currency and Credit Cards:
Payment in hotels, travel agencies, and airlines are made in
foreign exchange. Credit cards like American Express, Master and
Visa are widely accepted at major hotels, shops, and
restaurants. Remember to keep your Foreign Exchange Encashment
Receipt while making foreign exchange payments or transferring
foreign currency into Nepalese rupees. The receipts may be
needed to change left-over Nepalese Rupees into hard currency
before leaving the country. However, only 10 percent of the
total amount may be converted by the bank. ATM is widely in use
in Kathmandu.
Major banks, hotels and exchange counters at Tribhuvan
International Airport provide services for exchanging foreign
currency.
Exchange rates are published in English dailies such as The
Rising Nepal, The Kathmandu Post and The Himalayan Times.
Nepalese Rupees are found in denominations of Rupees 1000, 500,
100, 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1. Coins are found in denominations of
Rupees 5, 2 and 1. One rupee equals 100 paisa.
Time and Business Hours:
Nepal is 5 hours 45 minutes ahead of GMT.
Business hours within the Valley: Government offices are open
from 10 am to 5 p.m. from Sunday through Thursday and close at
3pm on Friday in the Kathmandu Valley. During the winter, they
close at 4 pm. Most Business offices are open from 10 am to 5
p.m. Sunday through Friday. Embassies and international
organizations are open from 9 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday.
Most shops open after 10 am and close at about 8 pm and are
usually closed on Saturdays.
Business hours outside the Valley: Government offices outside
Kathmandu valley open from 10 am to 5 p.m. from Sunday through
Thursday. On Fridays they remain open until 3 pm. Banks are open
from Sunday through Thursday from 10 am to 3 pm. On Fridays,
banks remain open until 12 pm only. Business offices are open
from 10 am to 5 pm Sunday through Friday. Recently many private
banks have re-organized to have different branches open at
various different times making banking hours longer. If one
branch is closed another will be open.
Holidays: Nepal observes numerous holidays, at the least a
couple in a month. So please check the holiday calendar. The
longest holiday in Nepal is during the Dashain festival in late
September or October. Government offices observe all the
national holidays and banks observe most of them. Businesses
observe major holidays only.
Communication Facilities:
Postal Services: The Central Post Office located near Dharahara
Tower, is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday through Friday. The
counters are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and provide stamps,
postcards and aerograms. Post Restante is available Sunday
through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Express Mail Service (EMS)
is available at GPO and at Thamel, Basantapur and airport postal
counters.
Telephone Services and Cell Phones: Telephone and fax services
are available at the Nepal Telecommunications Corporation at Tripureshwar. Hotels and private communications centers provide
long distance telephone and fax facilities. Cell phones are
widely use and sim cards available in major towns. For calling
from outside, country code for Nepal is 977 and the area code
for Kathmandu is 1.
Internet Services: There are countless Internet cafes and
communication centers have opened up in the Valley and around
the country. Visitors only have to find a place they are most
comfortable in to use the facilities to keep in touch with home.
Internet services are also offered by hotels.
Media: Nepali media has made a gigantic leap ahead in just a few
years time and what used to be a controlled and tight knit
community, is no more. The government audio and television news
networks are Radio Nepal and Nepal Television respectively.
However, numerous FM radio stations and regional television
stations are dominating the market. Major Nepali daily
newspapers are Gorkhapatra and Kantipur, while the English
dailies are The Rising Nepal, The Kathmandu Post and The
Himalayan Times. A number of other newspapers and magazines are
also available. About a dozen local TV channels and more than
100 TV channels from world wide can be watched almost all over
Nepal.
Electricity: Major towns have electricity and the voltage
available is 220-volts and 50 cycles. Load shedding is a
seasonal phenomenon during the dry season and eases off once it
begins to rain. However, most major hotels have uninterrupted
power supply through their own generators
How to Get There:
By Air:
Nepal Airlines is the national flag carrier of Nepal with
flights to/from Delhi, Dubai, Doha, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Kuala
Lumpur. Other international airlines operating from/ to
Kathmandu are Air Arabia (Sharjah), Air China (Lhasa), Arkefly
(Amsterdam), Bahrain Air (Bahrain), Biman Bangladesh, (Dhaka),
Buddha Air (Paro), China Eastern Airlines (Kunming), China
Southern Airlines (Guanzhou), Dragon Air (Hong Kong), Druk Air
(Delhi, Paro), Etihad Airways (Abu Dhabi), Flydubai (Dubai), GMG
Airlines (Dhaka), Gulf Air (Bahrain), Indian Airlines (Delhi,
Kolkotta, Varanasi), Jet Airways (Delhi), Jet Lite (Delhi),
Kingfisher Airlines (Delhi), Korean Air (Seoul), Oman Air
(Muscat), Pakistan International Airlines (Karachi, Islamabad),
Qatar Airways (Doha), Silk Air (Singapore), Thai Airways
(Bangkok) and United Airways (Dhaka).
By Land:
All visitors coming to Nepal by land must enter only through one
of these entry points (1) Kakarbhitta (2) Birgunj (3) Belhiya,
Bhairahawa (4) Nepalgunj (5) Dhangadi and (6) Mahendranagar in
the Nepal-India border and (7) Kodari in the Nepal-China border.
The overland tourists entering the country with their vehicles
must possess an international carnet or complete customs
formalities.
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