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Nepalese passport

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  • Nepalese passport
  • नेपाली राहदानी
The front cover of a Nepalesebiometric passport
TypeE-Passport
Issued byNepal
PurposeIdentification
EligibilityNepal citizenship
Expiration10 years from the date of issuance
CostRs.5,000 (adult 34 pages), Rs. 10,000 (adult 64 pages), Rs. 12,000 (Fast track service, 34 pages)

ANepalese passport(Nepali:नेपाली राहदानी) is issued from theMinistry of Foreign Affairsof theNepalto Nepali citizens for the purpose of international travel. TheDepartment of Passport (DoP),a Department under Ministry of Foreign Affairs functions as the issuing authority and is responsible for issuing Nepali passports on application to all eligibleNepali citizens.It enables the bearer to travel internationally and serves as proof ofNepali citizenship.[1]

Ordinary Nepali passports are chocolate brown in color with a chip symbol on their cover, which is commonly known ase-passport.[1]It hasCoat of arms of Nepalemblazoned in the center of the front cover. The wordsNepali:"राहदानी" and "नेपाल" are inscribed above the coat of arms and wordsEnglish:"PASSPORT" and "NEPAL" are inscribed below the coat of arms. The ordinary e-passport contains either 34 pages or 66 pages.[1]

History[edit]

Early passports[edit]

The early passports in Nepal were used for internal and external travel for religious and business purposes. The oldest passport in Nepal is a handwritten passport issued in 1957BSto a person named Kaliprasad (no surname disclosed) and history ten porters to travel toButwalandTaulihawafromKathmandu.The passport holder is identified with their physical description because there was no photography available at that time. A guarantor was needed to issue the passport. These old passports are showcased in the passport museum in Kathmandu.[2]

Modern passports[edit]

The modern passports were issued in 2012 BS. The first of this kind was issued in 10 Shrawan 2012 BS which was issued by the secretary of the ministry. These passports were in a form of sheet paper. The booklet form of the passport was issued in the 1960s. It is estimated that about 1 lakh passport was issued in sheet paper form.[2]Up to 2052 BS, all passports were issued in Kathmandu only. This was changed in 2052 BS to issue a passport fromfive development regionsas per government's policy of decentralization.[3]

Machine readable passport (MRP)[edit]

As a member ofInternational Civil Aviation Organization(ICAO) Nepal was obliged to issuemachine-readable passports(MRP) after 2010. Nepal stopped issuing hand-written passports on 31 March 2010.

MRP information page

Electronic passport[edit]

On 17 November 2021, the firstelectronic passport,or e-passport was introduced and Nepalese writerSatya Mohan Joshiwas the first to receive the e-passport.[4][5]

The Nepalis e-passports are produced by IDEMIA, the software that the Passport office uses is also from the same company.[6]

Other forms of passport[edit]

Nepali New E-Passport
Nepali New E-Passport

All traditional hand written passports were honoured as abona fidetravel document issued by the Nepalese Government until 24 November 2015. All traditional passports are withdrawn from circulation as of November 2015.

Design[edit]

Each passport contains a note inEnglishfrom the foreign ministry that is addressed to the authorities of all other states, identifying the bearer as a citizen of that state and requesting that he or she be allowed to pass and be treated according to international norms. The note inside Nepalese passport says:

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs request and require in the name of Government of Nepal all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance, and to afford him or her every assistance and protection of which he or she may stand in need of.

Current e-passport contains the following data:

  • Type
  • Passport Number
  • Surname
  • Given Names
  • Nationality
  • Date of Birth
  • Gender
  • Date of Issue
  • Date of Expiry
  • Citizenship/ National Identity Number
  • Place of Birth
  • Issuing Authority
  • Holder's Signature

Types of passports[edit]

There are 4 different types of passports issued by the government of Nepal. These are ordinary, official, diplomatic and travel documents. These passports are distinguished by their cover. The cover of ordinary e-passports is chocolate-brown. Diplomatic e-passports have a crimson-red cover, official e-passports navy-blue, and peacekeepers' e-passports are tiger-orange colour.[7]

Issuance of passport[edit]

Fees[edit]

As of 2022, an ordinary e-passports is issued for NPR 5,000 (adult 34 pages), NPR 10,000 (adult 66 pages), NPR 12,000 (Fast track service, 34 pages), NPR 20,000 (Fast track service, 66 pages).[1] Applicants for Nepalese passports are required to pay the authorized passport issuing office a sum of NPR 15000 or NPR 12,000 for issuance of passport on same day of application or for the day after the day of application respectively. Or, the sum of 10,000.00 (US$90.76 As of 15 July 2019) as fees for an Ordinary passport for urgent processing which takes 3–4 business day and NPR 5,000 for normal processing. Urgent processing is done by the ministry of foreign affairs and takes 2 to 3 days. Normal processing takes around 4 weeks but sometime it may take up to 6 weeks and is done from the Chief District officer's office. However, the Official and the Diplomatic passports are exempted from fees.[8][9]

Validity period[edit]

The passports are valid for 10 years from the date of issue and are issued by the Central Passport Office, District Administration Office in all 77 district headquarters as well as Nepalese embassies and consulates abroad. However, as per new regulation, validity is for 5 years in case of minor under 10 years of age.

Visa requirements[edit]

Main article:Visa requirements for Nepalese citizens
Countries and territories with visa-free entries or visas on arrival for holders of regular Nepalese passports
Nepal
Visa-free
Visa on arrival
Electronic authorization oreVisa
Visa available both on arrival or online
Visa required

In 2016, Nepalese citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 38 countries and territories, ranking the Nepalese passport 98th in the world according to theVisa Restrictions Index.Passports are not needed by citizens of India and Nepal to travel within each other's country by land or by air, but some identification may be required for border crossing or at the airport.

Issues with Passport Distribution[edit]

  • Complaints of long lines at Babarmahal Passport Office are common as of January, 2023.[10][11]This the passport office claims is because of very high demand and insufficient capacity in printing and distribution of completed passports.[12]
  • Passport distribution disruption: Passport printing and distribution was halted since 3 January 2023[13][14]Passport office claimed it as a software issue and that technicians from IDEMIA (passport and passport software provider) are looking into it.[15]Passport distribution was resumed 7 January 2023.[16]

Gallery[edit]

  • Cover of Nepali Passport (Old)
    Cover of Nepali Passport (Old)
  • Cover of Nepali Machine Readable Passport (MRP-Old)
    Cover of Nepali Machine Readable Passport (MRP-Old)
  • Cover of Nepali E-passport (New)
    Cover of Nepali E-passport (New)

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^abcd"Passport Pre-Enrollement – NEPAL".Emrtds.nepalpassport.gov.np.Retrieved14 April2022.
  2. ^ab"मृत्युदण्ड दिने वेलाको त्यो राहदानी: तस्वीरले होइन, वर्णले चिनाइन्थे मानिस".Himal Khabar.Retrieved25 June2022.
  3. ^"राहदानीमा सरकारको 'व्यापार'".Himal Khabar.Retrieved25 June2022.
  4. ^Giri, Anil (17 November 2021)."Nepal to start issuing e-passports from today".The Kathmandu Post.Archivedfrom the original on 17 November 2021.Retrieved17 November2021.
  5. ^"E-passports to be issued from today".My Republica.17 November 2021.Archivedfrom the original on 17 November 2021.Retrieved17 November2021.
  6. ^"Nepal innovates by issuing its first ePassports with IDEMIA"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 26 September 2022.
  7. ^"Nepal to start issuing e-passports from today".
  8. ^"Department of Passport, MOFA, Nepal".2012. Archived fromthe originalon 7 August 2015.Retrieved2 June2013.
  9. ^"Requirements to apply for a new passport".Embassy of Nepal – Washington DC. 2011. Archived fromthe originalon 10 December 2011.Retrieved30 November2011.
  10. ^"Ordinary people's hassle in obtaining a passport in Nepal: A case in point - OnlineKhabar English News".7 January 2023. Archived fromthe originalon 7 January 2023.Retrieved7 January2023.
  11. ^"Getting passports is becoming too arduous a task for many".29 August 2022. Archived fromthe originalon 29 August 2022.Retrieved7 January2023.
  12. ^"Hassles to receive passports likely to persist in existing conditions".6 December 2022. Archived fromthe originalon 6 December 2022.Retrieved7 January2023.
  13. ^https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://thehimalayantimes /nepal/passport-printing-distribution-halted*.Retrieved7 January2023.{{cite web}}:Missing or empty|title=(help)
  14. ^"Nepal Passport".3 January 2023. Archived fromthe original(JPG)on 3 January 2023.Retrieved7 January2023.
  15. ^"Technical experts from Idemia to examine software at passport department - myRepublica - The New York Times Partner, Latest news of Nepal in English, Latest News Articles".7 January 2023. Archived fromthe originalon 7 January 2023.Retrieved7 January2023.
  16. ^"Nepal Passport Resume".8 January 2023. Archived fromthe original(JPG)on 8 January 2023.Retrieved8 January2023.
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