The Department of Immigration has started issuing route permits for domestic and foreign tourists going to restricted zones through an online system.

Prior to this, the DOI was providing permits to tourists going to restricted zones only physically after completing the due procedures and paper work. But since last week, arrangements have been made to issue route permits through electronic means. With the provision of route permits online, now it will be easy for tourists to go to the upper Mustang, upper Dolpa, Tsum, and Nuvri Valleys of the Manaslu region of Gorkha, Simkot, Changkheli, and Namkha of Humla district, as well as the Kanchenjunga region of Taplejung, said Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN) General Secretary, Binod Sapkota.

Likewise, TAAN President Neelhari Bastola said the more tourists can be facilitated, the more they will come to visit Nepal. I believe that this online service will help promote the trekking industry, he said. Meanwhile, Acting Director General of the Department of Immigration, Krishna Bahadur Katwal, said with the new system in place, tourists can now easily get permits online by making ‘QR payment’ from a trekking company or their personal accounts.