School of Education

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Visa Process for International Students

Information on obtaining study visa for international students coming to Nepal for higher studies.

All international students who are interested in pursuing a study of any level in Nepal are required to obtain a visa. Apart from Indian nationals, all other nationals need a visa. It is to be noted that obtaining a tourist visa is the first and foremost step. After obtaining a tourist visa, international students can apply for other visas, in this case, a study visa.

How do I get a Tourist Visa?

There are many ways of obtaining a tourist visa. The most appropriate and easy way to obtain a Nepal visa is by applying on your arrival. An alternative to applying upon arrival is to apply in advance. Given below are four ways to obtain a visa for Nepal.

  1. Apply upon your arrival at Kathmandu’s international airport (TIA)
  2. At any of the land border crossings open to foreign nationals (each of these land borders has an immigration office)
  3. Apply at one of Nepal’s foreign consulates from abroad in advance.
  4. Apply on-line

How do is apply online for Tourist Visa?

We advise you to visit the website http://www.nepalimmigration.gov.np/ . This website is the property of the Government of Nepal, Department of Immigration. After the website opens check for the Online Application tab. Please click this tab. Upon clicking the tab, you will see the following advice:

Advice for Online Visa Applicants

To avoid long queues and unnecessary problems, kindly submit a complete Online Visa Application form to the Immigration Authority of Nepal on your first attempt! To do that, here are a few things you need to prepare:

  1. Please keep your valid passport at hand.
  2. Ready a recent digital photograph (size: 1.5” x 1.5”) in your removable device to upload your photograph for the application.
  3. Gather beforehand
    1. a detailed permanent residence address, and
    2. detailed address in Nepal.
    3. You need to provide telephone numbers—land-line and mobile.
    4. You need to provide your email address too.
    5. The submitted application will remain in the system for 15 days. After 15 days, the application will be deleted automatically from the system.
    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.
      • For your convenience, the deadline to contact the Immigration Authority will be mentioned in the receipt.
      • The receipt also mentions the documents you need to produce before the Immigration   Authority.
      • Please contact the Immigration Authority within 15 days after the submission of the application.
        • For example, if you submit your extension application today, and your visa is expiring the next day, on the third day if you visit the Department of Immigration, you will have to pay the late fee of that day. To prevent this sort of hassle, please submit your extension application on time and get your visa renewed before crossing the expiry date.
        • When you contact the Immigration Authority, please make sure you have the receipt and proper documents with you including the necessary fee.
        • No on arrival visa for country list - AFG,IRQ,CMR,GHA,SOM,SWZ,PSE,ZWE,NGA,ETH,LBR

Close this advice page, and, look for the Tourist Visa tab. You will come across the Tourist visa application page. Proceed by filling in the required information.

How much does the Tourist Visa cost?

The price of a tourist visa varies with duration and type. Given here are the three options for the length of a tourist visa. However, for all those who belong to SAARC countries, the first 30 days are free of cost.

Option

Duration of Visa

Cost of Visa

1

15 days

USD 25

2

30 days

USD 40

3

90 days

USD 100

 

Multiple Entry option

Extra $20, this is useful for going back-and-forth between India and Tibet.

Following this process, you will have in hand a tourist visa, and during the period of your status as a  tourist, you are required to take the following steps will towards receiving a full 1-year study visa.

How do I apply for a study visa?

A study visa is issued to foreign students pursuing academic /nonacademic degrees and research in Nepal. It is issued by the Department of Immigration upon the recommendation of the line agency (Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology). It is also issued to teachers/professors involved in academic work (teaching) in Nepal upon recommendations from the concerned agencies of the Nepal Government. It is issued for a maximum of one year as per the recommendation or length of study.

You need to have certain documents in hand before applying for a study visa. Given below are the necessary documents.

Necessary Documents

  • Recommendation letter from Ministry of Education, Science and Technology
  • University /College Admission Receipt (original)
  • Bank Statement (latest one week) with sufficient funds.
  • Online Application form ( Link to Online Study Visa Application)
  • Copies of passport and latest Nepali Visa
    • Marriage Certificate and Birth Certificate (for those applying their spouse and children as dependents)
    • Progress report Card (for renewal of Student Visa)

 For the Researcher applying for a student visa, the following additional documents should also be produced. 

  • Offer/Appointment letter from Academic Institution of Nepal (eg -University)
  • General Agreement between two Academic Institutions (of Nepal and abroad)

How much does a study visa cost?

Given below are the different categories of study visa and the cost associated with them in dollars (USD). The visa fees are also different across nationalities. If you do not belong to any of the countries mentioned on this list, please refer to the standard cost of academic or non-academic costs stated in this table. We also advise you to visit the following link: http://www.nepalimmigration.gov.np/page/study-visa

S.No

Study Category / Nationality of passport holder

Rate (USD)/per month

1

Academic

20

2

Non-Academic

50

3

Research

40

4

Bangladesh

15

5

Bhutan

10

6

Maldives

25

7

Pakistan and Srilanka

Gratis

 

Single Re-entry facility: 20 USD extra in addition to the monthly Visa Fee

Multiple Re-entry facility: 60 USD extra in addition to the monthly Visa Fee

Please prepare the following documents

  1. No Objection Letter.
  2. Bank Statement at least US dollar 3000 for a student.
  3. Student’s admission receipt from the college/ university
  4. Bio data of Students
  5. College recommendation letter to University for Visa Process
  6. University’s recommendation letter to Ministry of Education for visa with decision
  7. Valid Passport
  8. Students with tourist visa should apply within 60 days of commencement of tourist visa.

 Click Here to Apply