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Saving and budgeting in Nepal

How much to save from a Nepali salary, how big an emergency fund should be in Kathmandu, sinking funds for Dashain and Tihar, and the small daily leaks that eat a paycheck. Worked in rupees, with the savings and FD rates banks actually pay.

  • 10 min read

    Lock in before the hike? The 12-month WiFi prepay math in Nepal

    A 12-month WiFi plan in Nepal costs about 12% less than paying quarterly. What prepaying saves, what it does not protect you from, and who should do it.

  • 10 min read

    Mobile data vs home fibre after the hike: is a Ncell or NTC data pack now cheaper in Nepal?

    Ncell's Rs 799 pack gives 200 GB with unlimited calls; home fibre now starts near Rs 815 to Rs 1,075. When mobile data beats WiFi in Nepal, and when it doesn't.

    GuideNepalInternetNcellNepal TelecomHousehold Budget
  • 8 min read

    Rs 751 to Rs 905 overnight: why your WiFi bill just went up in Nepal (and the bigger hike coming)

    From Asoj 19, 2083, Nepal's ISPs stopped selling plans below 50 Mbps, and Subisu's cheapest went from Rs 751 to Rs 905. What changed, why, and what comes next.

  • 10 min read

    Your Food budget is four budgets: splitting groceries, khaja, eating out and delivery in Nepal

    NRB's new price index moved restaurants out of food, and afternoon khaja now outweighs lunch in it. Why one Food line hides four budgets, and how to split it.

  • 16 min read

    Your Gulf employer owes you: end-of-service gratuity and unpaid wages, country by country, and how to claim from Nepal

    What a Nepali worker is owed in rupees on leaving the UAE, Qatar, Saudi, Kuwait, Oman or Bahrain, the one-year claim clocks, and what Nepal can recover.

  • 14 min read

    Online betting in Nepal: the law, the blocked sites, and what Rs 5,000 a week costs over 10 years

    Betting is a crime in Nepal under Penal Code Section 125: up to a year in jail, Rs 10,000 and the stake forfeited. Rs 5,000 a week is Rs 26 lakh over a decade.

  • 17 min read

    What Dashain actually costs a Kathmandu family of four in 2083: the Rs 40,000 version and the Rs 1.2 lakh version

    Two Dashain budgets for a Kathmandu family of four, priced from Kalimati, NOC and DoTM rates. Even the lean one beats the lowest civil servant's festival pay.

  • 14 min read

    Paid the manpower agency and never flew: the refund Section 20 guarantees, and how to file at DoFE

    If the agency did not send you within three months of your labour permit, Section 20(2) owes you every rupee back plus 25 percent a year, inside 30 days.

  • 3 min read

    Kharchapatra is now on Google Play — the Android app for Nepali personal finance

    Kharchapatra's Android app is on Google Play: statement imports, budgets, goals, encrypted offline storage and biometric lock, synced with the web dashboard.

  • 11 min read

    Rs 21 kharba in remittance came home this year. Here is the receiving family's playbook

    Nepal received Rs 2,120 billion in remittance in 11 months while savings rates fell to 2.75%. What the family at home should do with the money, step by step.

  • 13 min read

    Your savings account pays 2.75%. Inflation is 5.22%. What a year of that costs

    Nepali banks pay 2.75% on savings while inflation runs 5.22%. When the real return went negative, what Rs 1 lakh loses in a year, and the 1pp you can claim.

  • 16 min read

    Rs 25,000 at a time: how Nepal's problematic cooperative refund actually works

    Nepal began refunding problematic cooperative depositors in May 2026: the priority ladder, Rs 25,000 instalments, the 35-day claim window, and who gets nothing.

  • 9 min read

    A-class vs B-class vs C-class bank in Nepal: does it matter for your FD or savings account?

    Class A, B and C banks in Nepal differ in paid-up capital and regulatory tier, not deposit-insurance cover. What really changes for your FD or savings account.

  • 8 min read

    How much does Teej actually cost? What's provable, and what nobody has ever measured

    Saree prices, bangle sales and vegetable spikes around Teej in Nepal are documented. A total household budget figure isn't. What the data actually shows.

  • 10 min read

    What going to Japan actually costs from Nepal: language school vs SSW, lakh by lakh

    The language-school route costs Rs 12–13.5 lakh in year one from Nepal. The SSW worker route should cost a fraction of that. The lakh-by-lakh math, sourced.

  • 9 min read

    The real cost of chasing a Loksewa job: coaching fees, attempts, and the opportunity-cost math

    Coaching runs Rs 3,000–13,500 and forms Rs 300–1,200, but two years of full-time prep costs Rs 7–10 lakh once rent and foregone salary count. The honest math.

  • 11 min read

    NEA electricity tariff slabs decoded: why crossing 20 units changes your whole bill

    Nepal's NEA domestic tariff, decoded: the free 20 units for 5A homes, the Rs 3 retro-charge past it, the service-charge staircase, and the new 5% VAT above 50 units.

    GuideNepalElectricityNEAHousehold Budget
  • 12 min read

    Job switch vs staying: how much of a raise justifies changing jobs in Nepal?

    A raise from switching jobs in Nepal shrinks fast: a tax return you must now file, a paused SSF medical clock, pay-in-lieu of notice. The real net, worked out.

    GuideNepalSalaryTaxCareer
  • 9 min read

    The real cost of a 'free' bank account in Nepal

    A 'free' Nepali savings account still drips Rs 1,000-1,500 a year in SMS, debit-card and app fees. The below-minimum penalty everyone fears doesn't exist here.

  • 11 min read

    Dhukuti in Nepal: how it works, the real return, and when it collapses

    Dhukuti promises above-bank returns from a circle of people you trust. How the bidding really works, why it is banned under Section 14A, and when it collapses.

    GuideNepalDhukutiSavingCommitteeRisk
  • 9 min read

    Minimum wage in Nepal 2083/84: the Rs 19,550 floor still in force, by month, day and hour

    Nepal's minimum wage is still Rs 19,550 a month in FY 2083/84: basic Rs 12,170 plus Rs 7,380 dearness allowance. The daily and hourly floors, and who's covered.

  • 8 min read

    Overtime, allowances and the Labour Act: what legally counts toward your pay in Nepal

    Overtime in Nepal is 1.5x basic, capped at 4 hours a day and 24 a week. What the Labour Act 2074 counts as remuneration, and which allowances dilute your SSF.

  • 9 min read

    Your annual profit bonus in Nepal: the 10% rule, the 6-vs-8-month cap, and who actually gets it

    The Bonus Act 2030 gives staff 10% of a profitable firm's net profit, capped at 6-8 months' salary. Who qualifies, when it pays, and why a loss year means zero.

    GuideNepalSalaryLabour LawBonus
  • 7 min read

    Living on one income in Kathmandu: a single-earner family budget that actually holds

    One salary, a family of four, Kathmandu prices. A line-by-line single-income budget, why school fees decide it, and the bigger buffer a sole earner needs.