5 Government Services You Can Now Pay for Digitally

From income tax to passport fees, Nepal's public service payments have quietly gone digital. Here's exactly which five services you can pay for from your phone today, and how to do it step by step.

Five government fees, one phone: tax, utilities, vehicle renewal, licenses, and passport payments now move through ConnectIPS, eSewa, and Khalti instead of a counter queue.

The Digitization of Public Services in Nepal

For years, paying a government fee in Nepal meant the same routine: print a form, stand in a line, hand over cash at a counter, and hope the receipt didn't get lost before you needed it again. That routine is disappearing. Through platforms like ConnectIPS, eSewa, Khalti, and the government's own Nagarik App, a growing list of public services can now be paid for entirely from a phone or computer, with the payment landing directly in the relevant government account.

This shift has been driven largely by Nepal Clearing House Limited's (NCHL) integrated e-payment gateway, ConnectIPS, which now connects directly to systems run by the Inland Revenue Department, the Financial Comptroller General's Office, provincial transport offices, and the Department of Passports. In practice, that means a single login can settle very different kinds of government dues, from income tax to a passport renewal fee, without needing a separate system for each office.

Below are five categories of government service you can now pay for digitally in Nepal, followed by a step-by-step guide, the real benefits of skipping the counter, and — just as importantly — what still can't be done entirely online yet.

1Tax Payments

Income tax and other revenue payments to the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) and the Financial Comptroller General's Office (FCGO) can now be settled online rather than at a bank counter. The process starts on the relevant government portal, where you enter your revenue details and generate a voucher number, often called an Electronic Bill Payment (EBP) number. From there, you're redirected to pay through ConnectIPS, which also supports a scan-and-pay option through NepalPay QR for anyone who prefers a wallet or mobile banking app over a full ConnectIPS login.

This matters most for individual taxpayers filing annual returns and for small businesses making regular VAT or advance tax payments, both of which used to require a physical trip to a designated bank branch during office hours.

2Utility Bills (Electricity, Water)

Monthly electricity bills from the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and water bills from local supply boards are among the most frequently paid digital transactions in the country, largely because wallets like eSewa and Khalti built dedicated bill-payment sections specifically for utilities early on. Customers can look up their bill using their customer or meter ID, view the amount due, and pay instantly, with the payment reflected in the utility's own billing system, usually within the same day.

Because these are recurring monthly payments, many users now set reminders or use auto-pay style features inside their wallet app, which removes the need to remember a due date at all.

3Vehicle Registration and Renewal

Annual vehicle tax, sometimes called road tax, is a provincial fee that used to require a visit to the transport management office holding your vehicle's blue book. That's changed for most vehicle owners: apps like the Nagarik App now pull your registration, tax dues, and renewal status directly from the government's transport database, letting you pay through ConnectIPS, eSewa, or Khalti and receive a digital receipt, often with a QR code, as proof of payment.

4License and Permit Fees

Beyond vehicle tax itself, a range of license and permit-related fees now route through the same digital payment rails. This includes categories like driving license-related charges, professional and trade permit renewals handled by local government offices, and exam fees for public service commission processes, all of which can generate a payment voucher that's then settled through ConnectIPS or a connected wallet instead of a cashier's window.

The pattern here mirrors tax and vehicle payments: the originating office (whether a transport authority, municipality, or commission) generates the request, and the payment itself happens on a shared digital rail rather than through a fee unique to that office.

5Passport and Visa-Related Fees

The Department of Passports has moved its revenue collection online through its own ePayment portal, built on the Revenue Management Information System (RMIS). Applicants generate a request code after completing the pre-enrollment application form, then pay that exact amount through ConnectIPS. Two important details are worth flagging here: the payment cannot be refunded once submitted, and applicants still need to print two copies of the paid voucher to bring physically to the enrollment station, since the online payment replaces the counter payment step, not the entire in-person process.

Visa-related fees for foreign travel, where applicable through Nepali missions or partner services, generally follow a similar logic — the payment itself is digital, even when parts of the surrounding process, like document verification, remain in person.

How to Pay: Step-by-Step via Wallet or ConnectIPS

While each government office has its own portal, the actual payment step is almost always the same once you reach it. Here's the general flow that applies across tax, utility, vehicle, license, and passport payments.

1. Go to the relevant government portal or app. This might be the IRD or FCGO website for tax, your utility's bill-check page, the Nagarik App for vehicle tax, or the Department of Passports' ePayment portal.
2. Enter your service details and generate a voucher. This produces a reference number — often called a voucher number, EBP number, or request code — that identifies exactly what you're paying for and how much.
3. Choose your payment method. Select ConnectIPS directly, or use a linked wallet such as eSewa or Khalti if the portal supports it. Most portals also now display a NepalPay QR code you can scan from any enabled banking or wallet app.
4. Log in and authenticate. If using ConnectIPS, log in with your username, password, and the security image shown (a phishing-protection feature), then select the bank account to debit.
5. Confirm with two-factor authentication. Every transaction requires your transaction PIN plus a one-time password (OTP) sent to your registered mobile number or email before it goes through.
6. Save your digital receipt. You'll receive confirmation by SMS, email, and on-screen. For services like passports and vehicle renewal, print the voucher as well, since the physical copy is often still required at the counter.

Benefits of Going Digital for These Services

• No office hours, no travel. Payments can be made any time, from anywhere with internet access, including by Nepalis living abroad paying fees on behalf of family members.
• Fewer middlemen. Because payments connect directly to the government's own systems, there's less room for the informal "agent fees" that used to accompany in-person government transactions.
• Instant, verifiable records. Digital receipts and SMS confirmations create a traceable payment history, which is useful for tax records, loan applications, or resolving a disputed payment later.
• Lower transaction costs. ConnectIPS government payments carry modest, published fee slabs — in many cases just a few rupees per transaction — rather than the time cost of a half-day office visit.
• Stronger security than cash. Two-factor authentication and phishing-protection features like the ConnectIPS security image reduce the risk of fraud compared to handling large cash payments at a counter.

What's Still Missing or Offline

Digitization here has genuinely reduced friction, but it hasn't fully replaced in-person government processes — it's mainly replaced the payment step within them. A few gaps are worth knowing about before you assume a service is entirely paperless.

Frequently Asked Questions