Nepal's FY 2083/84 budget is the largest and, in many ways, the most consequential in the country's history — not just because of its size, but because of how many separate tax laws it touches at once. For CAs, finance managers, and business owners, the real work isn't reading the budget speech; it's translating a dozen scattered announcements into a checklist you can actually action before the new fiscal year begins. That's what this guide is for.
Budget 2083/84 snapshot — size, theme, and key numbers
Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle presented the FY 2083/84 budget on Jestha 15, 2083 (May 29, 2026), in a joint session of the Federal Parliament. At NPR 2,124.34 billion, it is the largest budget in Nepal's history — a 25.2% increase over the revised estimate for FY 2082/83. The allocation splits into recurrent expenditure (Rs 1,270.58 billion, 59.8%), capital expenditure (Rs 431.10 billion, 20.3%), and financial management, primarily debt servicing (Rs 422.64 billion, 19.9%). On the financing side, the government is targeting Rs 1,405 billion in revenue, alongside Rs 247.28 billion in foreign loans and Rs 410 billion in domestic borrowing. The fiscal year itself runs from 1 Shrawan 2083 (16 July 2026) to the end of Ashadh 2084 (mid-July 2027).
Corporate tax — what stayed the same
Unlike personal income tax, corporate tax rates were left untouched in the FY 2083/84 budget speech. The general corporate rate remains 25%, while banks, financial institutions, general insurance companies, telecom operators, and businesses dealing in tobacco or alcohol continue to be taxed at the higher 30% rate. Special industries and export-oriented enterprises continue to receive concessional treatment, and IT/software export income continues to benefit from sector-specific incentives, including the exemption on convertible foreign-currency export earnings. Businesses should not assume "no change announced" means "nothing to check" — always confirm your specific sector's rate against the final Finance Act 2083 schedule, since sector-specific notifications sometimes follow the main budget speech.
VAT changes — ride-hailing, digital payment discounts, and flexible rates
The standard VAT rate stays at 13%, but several new rules layer on top of it. Ride-hailing and similar app-based transport services now attract a 5% VAT levy — a first for this sector in Nepal, and one that platforms and drivers will need to build into fare and billing systems. Electricity consumption above 50 units per month also picks up a 5% VAT charge. On the relief side, the budget introduces a 10% VAT billing discount for purchases settled through digital payment channels — mobile wallets, the Interbank Payment System (IPS), QR payments, and card transactions — encouraging a further shift away from cash. The government has also rolled out a universal VAT-bill lottery covering a broader base of transactions, including remittance-linked purchases, as a compliance and formalization tool. Businesses that haven't already configured point-of-sale and billing systems to apply these differentiated rates correctly should treat this as a priority item.
Customs simplification — 11 tiers cut to 7, 360 excise items removed
On the trade side, the budget delivers a genuine simplification: the customs duty structure collapses from eleven tiers down to seven, with duties on 273 categories of industrial raw materials reduced to keep raw-material duties at least one tier below the corresponding finished-goods rate. Excise duty has been abolished entirely on 360 goods, while duties were raised roughly 10% on cigarettes, liquor, and beer — a familiar pattern of easing rates on productive inputs while tightening them on discouraged consumption categories. Import-heavy businesses and manufacturers should re-map their HS code classifications against the new seven-tier structure well before shipments clear customs under the new fiscal year, since misclassification under the old tier logic could trigger unnecessary disputes or delays.
Capital gains tax revisions for listed securities and property
Capital markets and property investors see two distinct changes. Capital gains tax on the sale of listed securities has been made a final tax — meaning it is settled at the point of transaction and no longer needs to be reconciled again on the annual income tax return, which simplifies filing considerably for retail investors and removes a layer of uncertainty for frequent traders. For immovable property, the earlier flat capital gains structure is being replaced with a tiered system based on holding period, with short-, medium-, and long-hold transactions taxed at different rates (broadly in the 5%–10% range depending on how long the property was held) rather than one uniform rate regardless of holding period. This rewards longer-term holding and discourages rapid speculative flipping. Businesses and individuals with pending property transactions that straddle the fiscal year-end should get specific advice on which regime applies to their transaction date.
Digital Service Tax continuation for foreign B2C platforms
Nepal has, for several fiscal years now, applied a Digital Service Tax on foreign digital service providers offering business-to-consumer services into Nepal without a physical presence — covering categories such as streaming, app marketplaces, online advertising, and cloud-based subscription services. The FY 2083/84 budget speech did not announce structural changes to this regime, meaning affected foreign platforms should continue registering, charging, and remitting under the existing framework while watching for any clarifying notice in the Finance Act 2083 or subsequent IRD circulars. Nepali businesses that transact with or resell services from such platforms should confirm whether DST has already been factored into their supplier's Nepal-facing pricing, to avoid double-counting the levy internally.
Green Tax and other new levies
The budget introduces a new Green Tax at the customs point, which consolidates what were previously two separate scattered levies — the infrastructure development tax and the road maintenance fee — into a single, simplified charge. The stated intent is to streamline collection while maintaining a dedicated revenue stream for infrastructure and environmental goals, rather than to significantly increase the overall burden on importers. Businesses that previously budgeted for the infrastructure development tax and road maintenance fee as separate line items should update their cost models to reflect the single consolidated Green Tax charge instead.
Tax amnesty and settlement provisions — who qualifies
One of the more consequential compliance-side announcements is a one-time tax dispute settlement window. Taxpayers with tax disputes currently pending in court can settle by paying the principal tax amount plus a nominal 1% fee — without the accumulated interest, fees, and penalties that typically make such disputes expensive to resolve. This is a pragmatic move aimed at clearing Nepal's substantial backlog of tax litigation and freeing up both taxpayer and administrative resources. Businesses and individuals with unresolved tax disputes sitting in the court system should review their eligibility for this window promptly, since these settlement schemes are almost always time-bound and typically closed by a stated deadline (early indications point to a window running through the end of Poush 2083 for related administrative matters, though businesses should confirm the exact settlement deadline against the final Finance Act text).
Action checklist: 8 things to do before 1 Shrawan 2083
With this many moving parts, it helps to work from a fixed list rather than trying to track every announcement individually. Here is a practical starting checklist for CA firms and businesses preparing for the FY 2083/84 transition.
Disclaimer
This article summarizes publicly announced provisions of the FY 2083/84 budget speech and early Finance Bill 2083 commentary as understood at the time of writing. Several operational details are still being finalized through IRD circulars and the final gazetted Finance Act. This is general information, not tax or legal advice — please consult a registered Chartered Accountant or your legal counsel before acting on any provision described here, particularly the settlement window deadlines and sector-specific rates.
Related reading: For a deep dive into exactly how the new personal income tax slabs work with worked salary examples, see Nepal Income Tax Slabs FY 2083/84 Explained. We'll also be publishing dedicated guides on the IT export tax exemption and the new capital gains regime for property transactions in upcoming posts.
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