Nepal is stepping into the digital nomad visa arena – and it’s only the second country in South Asia to do so. Obviously known the world over for Mount Everest and trekking trails, Nepal is now eyeing remote workers as part of its economic future.
Over 60 countries worldwide have launched special visas for digital nomads and Nepal doesn’t want to be left behind. In fact, officials in Kathmandu have drawn up an action plan to introduce a five-year “digital nomad” visa policy, aiming to get a slice of this billion dollar pie and attract global freelancers, remote employees and entrepreneurs to live and work in the country. Nepal is positioning itself as a “vibrant, connected and affordable” base for global professionals. Here’s what I know so far about this unique new entrant in the remote-work visa race.
What Nepal’s digital nomad visa offers
Now this is all hypothetical at this stage as the visa hasn’t been signed into law, but from available resources at the time of writing (May 2025), these are the likely privileges that will be afforded to holders of Nepal’s Digital Nomad Visa:
- Long-term, multiple-entry access: A digital nomad visa for Nepal will be valid for 5 years and allow multiple entries, meaning you can come and go freely without constantly reapplying.
- One-year stay at a time: While the visa is issued for five years, holders will get a residence permit of up to 1 year at a time, renewable annually up to the 5-year mark. It’s unclear whether a renewal application will be simplified or the same process as a new visa.
- Bring your partner along: The policy is expected to extend to family: the spouse of a digital nomad visa holder will also be granted a visa to stay in Nepal. It’s possible that it will follow the route of other visas and have a slightly higher income requirement. Provisions for children or other dependants haven’t been mentioned yet, so that may be clarified as the program develops.
- Local banking privileges: Visa holders will be allowed to open a foreign currency bank account in Nepal. There are some interesting rules around savings and investments that are proposed, but they sound a bit odd (lost in translation in all likelihood), so I’m omitting them from here until there’s more official clarity.
- Buy a set of wheels: Unusually, Nepal plans to let digital nomads purchase vehicles in their own name and even drive legally using their home country’s driving licence. This is a perk not all nomad visas offer, or if they do, rarely explicitly state. But, a welcome addition nonetheless.
- Minimal taxation: If you reside in Nepal for 183 days or more in a year, you’ll be subject to a flat 5% income tax on foreign income you earn while in Nepal. Stay less than 183 days, and you won’t trigger income tax at all. Whilst a lot of visas other tax-free periods for digital nomads, 5% is a very low tax rate, a gentle nudge to contribute to Nepal’s economy without scaring off potential applicants, let’s just hope that dealing with local income tax isn’t difficult, as that will be the true barrier to entry.
- Nomad-friendly infrastructure on the horizon: The government recognises that internet connectivity and work-friendly spaces are crucial. They’ve stated they will invest in improving broadband networks, setting up well-equipped co-working spaces and related infrastructure to make Nepal more comfortable for digital nomads. Now, whilst this is great, my concern now is… how much work needs to be done? And are they going to get it done in the self-imposed one-year time limit? Fingers crossed!
Who can apply?
Nepal’s digital nomad visa is aimed at your typical digital nomad audience and there seem to be some clear eligibility criteria emerging from the policy plan:
- Income or savings proof: Applicants will need to show they have a stable remote income of at least USD $1,500 per month, or savings over $20,000 in the bank. Whilst the income level is relatively accessible and in-line with visas from similar countries, I think the savings requirement is very low, especially seeing as it’s a five-year visa. However, the visa is renewable annually, so it is probably you’ll have to demonstrate that you still have $20K each year at renewal.
- Health insurance: You must hold a health insurance policy with $100,000 coverage that is valid for treatment in Nepal.
- Spouse/partner inclusion: You can apply with a spouse or partner under this scheme. Your significant other will be granted a parallel visa if your application is approved. This makes Nepal attractive for couples who want to adventure together. (It’s not yet clear if children can be added as dependants – the initial policy notes haven’t specified provisions for kids, schooling, etc., so that may come later as the policy is refined.)
At this stage, there’s no mention of caps on the number of visas or restrictions by nationality, whilst Nepal doesn’t have many visa-free arrangements; EU member countries, the UK and the US, for example, can all receive visa on arrival for tourism purposes and there are only a very small handful of nationalities with restricted movement/entry in Nepal.
How to apply
So, how would one actually get this visa? As of now (mid-2025), the digital nomad visa is still in the planning phase – the government has approved the concept and is working out the implementation details, they have a year to roll it out. I think that’s fairly reasonable, I’ve seen a few instances of gaps of around two years from announcement to launch (Philippines and Italy for example), so a year isn’t insane, but I am concerned about the quote for improved infrastructure to help facilitate, this is something I’d expect to be done and dusted long before announcement and at the very least, it’s a bad PR move to even mention it at the same time.
Other South Asian digital nomad visas to consider
Nepal’s new scheme is exciting, but it’s one of many around the world. If you’re shopping around for a digital nomad visa in South Asia, then you’re only other option is, Sri Lanka, which offers a dedicated “Digital Nomad” category under its Residence Visa scheme (Residence Visa – 10).
Beyond South Asia, you have a growing number of options in Central Asia (e.g. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan) and plenty of choice in South East Asia like Thailand, Philippines and South Korea, to name a few.
Each of these digital nomad visas has its own flavour and requirements. When choosing, consider factors like the cost of living, climate, time zone alignment with your work, strength of community and, of course, tax implications. The good news is that governments worldwide are competing for remote workers, so there’s an ever-growing menu of options.
