Can I send medicine to Nepal?
Yes, with conditions.
Regulated by the Department of Drug Administration. For medicine a patient needs, apply for a special recommendation with the prescription, a hospital letter, and a citizenship certificate copy before shipping.
For every Onvoyo box: Onvoyo can't carry prescription drugs. Over-the-counter medicine and vitamins follow the destination's own rules.
More rules for Nepal
Not allowed
- Narcotics, including ganja, charas (hashish), and opium, and medicines banned as narcotic drugs
Allowed with conditions
- Medicines
- Regulated by the Department of Drug Administration. To import medicine for a patient, for example one not sold in Nepal, the patient applies for a special recommendation with the prescription, a hospital recommendation letter, and a copy of their citizenship certificate. Arriving travelers have separate allowances.
Quantity limits
- Food and medicines (travelers only)
- Returning Nepalis: 7 kg of food duty-free, and patients' medicines after treatment abroad. Foreigners: medicines up to NPR 10,000 (about $65), food up to NPR 5,000, and fresh fruit up to NPR 2,000.
Before you ship to Nepal
- Tax-free limit
- Nepal has no general duty-free allowance for courier boxes. Goods that someone living abroad sends to family in Nepal, in personal quantities and worth up to USD 500 (about NPR 76,800), can be cleared on paying the normal duty and VAT. A box worth more than USD 500 that is declared lower can be confiscated, or released only after a fine equal to the excess value plus duty. Declarations for goods worth up to NPR 5,000 (about $33) skip the NPR 500 customs service fee.
- Receiver ID
- Nepal's customs rules don't set a tax or ID number for personal boxes. Whoever declares the goods must show papers that prove they own them, so ship in the receiver's own name, and the courier may ask for a copy of the receiver's citizenship certificate or passport. Returning residents clear their own belongings in person and can't have them cleared in someone else's name.
- Transit
- 3-5 business days from the Gulf, Malaysia, and India; 4-7 from Europe, North America, Japan, and Australia
Questions
Can I send medicine to Nepal?
Yes, with conditions. Regulated by the Department of Drug Administration. For medicine a patient needs, apply for a special recommendation with the prescription, a hospital letter, and a citizenship certificate copy before shipping.
Ask about a specific item
Official sources
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Department of Drug Administration, Nepal
नागरिक वडापत्र – पैठारी शाखा (Citizen Charter – Import Section) (opens in a new tab) - 5.
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Department of Customs, Nepal
भन्सार कार्यविधि, २०६७ (Customs Procedure, 2067) (opens in a new tab) - 9.
Nepal Rastra Bank
Foreign Exchange Rates (opens in a new tab)
General guidance, not legal advice. Customs in Nepal makes the final decision on every box.