How to obtain a Nepal visa at the Kathmandu airport

Besides Indian nationals, everyone needs a visa to travel to Nepal. It’s very easy to obtain one. You could either get one on arrival at the Kathmandu airport or in your home country from the Nepali embassy. If you are getting a visa on arrival, please fill out the online form 15 days prior to your travel to Nepal.

Obtaining a visa on arrival at the airport:

1) Fill out the visa form:

Prior to your arrival in Kathmandu, go to the Nepal Department of Immigration website and fill out the online form. Here’s the link to the online form if you are arriving at the Tribhuvan International airport in Kathmandu: https://nepaliport.immigration.gov.np/on-arrival/IO01

Read this before you fill out your application form:

1. Please keep your valid passport at hand.
2. Ready a recent digital photograph (size: 1.5” x 1.5”) in your pen drive or other device to upload your photograph for the application.
3. Gather beforehand
   1. a detailed permanent residence address, and
   2. detailed address in Nepal.
4. You need to provide telephone numbers—land-line and/or mobile.
5. You need to provide your email address too.
6. Once the application is successfully submitted, a receipt will be sent to your email immediately.
7. Print the receipt and keep it with you as you need to produce it before the Immigration Authority.
8. The receipt also mentions about the documents you need to produce before the Immigration Authority.
9. Please contact the Immigration Authority within 15 days after the submission of application.
10. When you contact the Immigration Authority, please make sure you have the receipt and proper documents with you including the necessary fee.

If you are traveling with Crystal Mountain Treks, your address in Nepal would be:

CRYSTAL MOUNTAIN TREKS
Phone: (+977-1) 4416813 / 4428013
E-mail: info@crystalmountaintreks.com

House #: 95/8

Street Name: Lazimpat

Ward#: 2

Municipality: Kathmandu

District: Kathmandu

If you haven’t filled out the online form, you can do so using the kiosks at the airport. These may or may not work all the time. Or there may be a queue to use the few kiosks that are available. So it’s best to fill out the online form.

Pay your visa fee:

After you exit your plane, walk to the immigration block (just follow everyone else). You need to pay for your visa. Go to the correct booth which reads visa fee collection center and Rastriya Banijya Bank Ltd. (see picture of booth).

It’s best to carry the exact change in cash in US$/EURO/AUS$/GBP etc. The fee in US$ is as follows:

15 day multiple entry visa: US$ 30

30 day multiple entry visa: US$ 50

100 day multiple entry visa: US$ 125

Get your visa on arrival:

After paying for your visa, stand in the correct line – “Visa on Arrival”.

Here you will have to present your electronic VISA receipt, passport, and the receipt that shows that you have paid for your VISA (I think it’s pink).

Collecting your bags:

After you obtain your visa, you would descend to the ground floor to retrieve your bag. Be prepared for the haphazardness. But before you get there, you need to X-Ray your carry-on bags one more time. This is because the authorities are trying to crack down on gold smuggling. Apparently, Nepal is a gateway for gold smuggling into India.

After you retrieve your bags, walk out through the green channel where officials will check to see that your bag identification number matches the tag given to you at the check-in of your home country. So, please always remember to keep your bag identification tag handy. We understand it’s unusual for people coming from the US or elsewhere to have to do that, and after a VERY long flight, people might not have their baggage tags handy at all…

Exiting the airport:

There are free carts for use at the airport. You do not have to pay for using them. If a friendly “helper” comes to help you, please be prepared to pay a tip. And their rates are extraordinarily high for Nepal. Only allow the person with our placard or wearing a Crystal Mountain Trek t-shirt to handle your luggage. Our airport representative will be waiting outside after you exit the terminal.

Extending Your Visa

You can extend your Nepal visa for a total of 150 days at the Immigration Department in Kathmandu or Pokhara. It costs $30 for 15 days and $2 per day for every additional day.

Edited on 25 July 2022 by Jwalant Gurung