Updated 2026 · A plain-language guide to Nepal's first domestic card scheme
If your bank has recently mentioned a "NEPALPAY" card alongside your usual Visa or Mastercard option, you're not imagining things. Nepal now has its own domestic card payment scheme, built entirely on infrastructure that stays inside the country. For a market that has depended on foreign card networks for decades, that's a meaningful shift — and it directly affects how much your bank pays to process your card, which in turn affects the fees you see.
This guide explains what NepalPay actually is, who built it, how it's different from the international cards you already know, and what it means for your day-to-day banking.
Key takeaways
- NepalPay is Nepal's own card scheme, developed by Nepal Clearing House Limited (NCHL) under Nepal Rastra Bank's National Payment Switch initiative.
- It launched publicly on 31 March 2025, with a live test transaction between Himalayan Bank, Machhapuchhre Bank, and Siddhartha Bank.
- NepalPay cards work at ATMs and POS terminals just like existing debit/credit cards — the difference is entirely in the backend routing.
- Because transaction data is processed inside Nepal instead of overseas, banks avoid the per-transaction fees they currently pay to Visa/Mastercard, which can translate into lower charges for customers.
- NepalPay is available as debit, credit, prepaid, and virtual cards, and is currently valid within Nepal (with India and Bhutan acceptance for the domestic card variant).
What Exactly Is NepalPay?
NEPALPAY, or the Nepal Payment Card, is the card scheme built and run by Nepal Clearing House Limited under a vision set out by Nepal Rastra Bank to give Nepal its own domestic card network, so every bank and financial institution in the country can offer customers an additional way to pay electronically. It sits inside a bigger project called the National Payment Switch, and specifically its National Card Switch component, which handles interoperability between different banks' card transactions.
In simple terms: every time you swipe a Visa or Mastercard card in Nepal, the transaction data has traditionally travelled to servers outside the country for verification before coming back to authorise the payment. That round trip can add five to six seconds to something as routine as an ATM withdrawal, and it comes with a cost — Nepali banks pay international networks for every transaction that gets routed this way. NepalPay keeps that entire process inside Nepal's borders.
Who Built NepalPay, and When Did It Launch?
Nepal Clearing House Limited (NCHL) had already been running the Retail Payment Switch — the system behind ConnectIPS, NepalPay Instant, NepalPay QR, and NepalPay Request — since November 2021. The card scheme is the second phase of that same national infrastructure project. To build it, NCHL merged with Nepal Payment Solutions (NePS), the company that had been operating Visa-based EMV cards in Nepal for eleven years, marking the first Payment Service Operator merger in the country.
The scheme's infrastructure was declared fully operational on 31 March 2025, when outgoing Nepal Rastra Bank governor Maha Prasad Adhikari unveiled the NEPALPAY card publicly. The launch included a live demonstration: a NEPALPAY card issued by Himalayan Bank was used successfully at a Machhapuchhre Bank point-of-sale terminal and a Siddhartha Bank ATM — proving that cards from one bank work across other banks' terminals, which is the whole point of a national card switch.
What Card Formats Does NepalPay Offer?
NEPALPAY is designed to be available as debit, credit, prepaid, and virtual cards, giving the same day-to-day convenience as international cards for ATM withdrawals, point-of-sale purchases, and online payments. The core difference isn't what you can do with the card — it's how the transaction is processed behind the scenes.
| Card type | Typical use | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Debit | Linked to your savings/current account for everyday spending and ATM withdrawal | Most common consumer format |
| Credit | Borrow-and-repay spending with a credit limit | Issued by banks that offer NepalPay credit products |
| Prepaid | Load a fixed amount in advance, spend until it runs out | Useful for budgeting or gifting |
| Virtual | Card number without physical plastic, for online use | Issued instantly through mobile/internet banking where supported |
Why Does a "Domestic" Card Matter to You?
One of the main benefits of NepalPay is that customer transaction data stays inside Nepal, which lowers the risk of data being exposed to external breaches and gives more control over financial transactions. Because the national payment switch charges lower routing fees than international networks, banks can pass some of that saving on to customers.
The fee math, in plain terms
On interbank ATM withdrawals, customers are currently charged around Rs 15 per transaction, and Rs 10–12 of that goes to the international card network. On POS purchases, banks typically lose 0.5% to 0.7% of the transaction value to the same networks — roughly Rs 30–45 on a mid-sized purchase. NepalPay is built to keep more of that money inside the domestic banking system instead of paying it abroad.
Can You Use NepalPay Outside Nepal?
The domestic version of the NEPALPAY card is explicitly labelled "Valid Only in Nepal, India & Bhutan," which must be printed on the front of the card near the NEPALPAY logo. NCHL has said it intends to enable NEPALPAY for international payments in the future, but for now the domestic card is built for use within Nepal and its immediate neighbours. If your priority is paying foreign websites like Amazon, Netflix, or international subscriptions, you'll still need a separate international-capable card — a topic covered in our companion guide on why Nepali debit cards don't work on Amazon or Netflix.
NEPALPAY vs. International Cards at a Glance
| Feature | NepalPay (domestic) | Visa / Mastercard |
|---|---|---|
| Data routing | Stays inside Nepal | Routed through overseas network |
| Geographic acceptance | Nepal, India, Bhutan (domestic variant) | Worldwide, wherever the network is accepted |
| Typical transaction fees | Generally lower for banks and customers | Higher, due to international network charges |
| Online foreign purchases | Not designed for this yet | Supported where the issuer enables international use |
| ATM/POS use inside Nepal | Full support | Full support |
For a deeper side-by-side comparison, see our dedicated article: NepalPay vs. Visa vs. Mastercard — which should you choose?
How Do You Get a NepalPay Card?
NepalPay cards are issued through your existing bank or financial institution once that institution joins the scheme — you don't apply to NCHL directly. Any bank or financial institution interested in issuing NepalPay cards can register with NCHL to do so. In practice, that means:
- Check whether your bank currently issues NepalPay-branded debit, credit, or prepaid cards.
- If you're opening a new account, ask specifically whether NepalPay is offered alongside Visa/Mastercard options.
- If you already hold an account, ask your branch or check mobile banking to see if you can switch or add a NepalPay card.
If you're starting from scratch, our guide on how to open a bank account and get a debit card in Nepal walks through the full process, and our national ID-based guide covers how to get a debit card using just your national ID card.
Practical tip
Because NepalPay is still rolling out bank by bank, availability varies. If your bank doesn't yet offer it, ask when it's expected — adoption is expected to widen as more banks connect to the National Card Switch.
Common misconception
NepalPay is not a mobile wallet or a separate app like eSewa or Khalti. It's a card payment scheme that works through your regular bank-issued plastic or virtual card, the same way Visa or Mastercard does — just with domestic processing underneath.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is NepalPay the same as ConnectIPS or NepalPay QR?
No. ConnectIPS, NepalPay QR, and NepalPay Instant are part of the Retail Payment Switch for account-to-account and QR transfers. The NEPALPAY card is a separate, newer component — the National Card Switch — specifically for plastic and virtual card transactions at ATMs and POS terminals.
Who operates the NepalPay card scheme?
Nepal Clearing House Limited (NCHL) operates NepalPay under the National Payment Switch framework envisioned by Nepal Rastra Bank.
Does a NepalPay card cost more or less than a Visa card?
Fees are set by individual banks, but because NepalPay avoids the routing charges paid to international networks, banks generally have room to offer it at a lower cost than comparable international cards. Always confirm exact charges with your bank, since they can vary and change over time.
Can I use a NepalPay card to shop on international websites?
The current domestic NepalPay card is built for use in Nepal, India, and Bhutan. It is not designed for international e-commerce today, though NCHL has indicated plans to extend NepalPay for international payments in the future.
Which banks currently issue NepalPay cards?
Himalayan Bank issued the card used in the official launch demonstration, with Machhapuchhre Bank and Siddhartha Bank also connected at launch. More banks are expected to join as the scheme expands — check directly with your bank for the latest availability.
The Bottom Line
NepalPay represents Nepal's first serious step toward owning its card payment infrastructure instead of renting it from international networks. For everyday users, the card looks and behaves like any other debit or credit card — the meaningful difference is what happens after you swipe: your data stays in the country, and the fees that used to leave Nepal largely stay home too. As more banks connect to the scheme, expect NepalPay to become a standard option alongside Visa and Mastercard rather than a replacement for them.
This article reflects publicly available information as of 2026. Card fees, bank participation, and international acceptance for NepalPay may change — confirm current details with Nepal Clearing House Limited or your bank before making decisions.
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