your passport
Nothing else can start until this exists. The name printed here becomes the name on your offer letter, your visa, your test results and your degree — so get it right, and get it early.
A passport is not just a travel document in this process — it is the identity anchor for everything else. Universities key your file to the passport number. English tests print the number on the result. The visa is issued into the physical book.
Two consequences follow, and both cost students real money:
Book your English test after your passport, never before. If the name or number on your test result doesn't match your passport, the test board's correction process is slow and sometimes means resitting.
Check the validity window. Many missions want your passport valid for the full length of your course, or at least six months beyond your intended arrival. A passport with a year left on it will be a problem later even though it works today.
Pre-enrol online
Fill the pre-enrolment form on the department's online portal and book an appointment. You cannot skip this and walk in — the portal generates the slip the counter works from.
Choose where to enrol
You can enrol at the Department of Passports in Tripureshwor or at a District Administration Office. Fast-track service is only available at the department in Kathmandu — if you need speed, that is the trip you are making.
Attend in person for biometrics
Your photograph and fingerprints are captured at the counter, so somebody has to be physically there — no proxy, no agent. Bring your original citizenship certificate, the pre-enrolment slip, and your previous passport if you are renewing.
Pay the fee
Paid at the office against your application. The amount depends on the page count and whether you take normal or fast-track service — see the figures below.
Collect the passport
Collection is from the office where you enrolled. Check every field the moment you receive it — name spelling, date of birth, and the exact form of your surname. A misprint is far cheaper to fix in week one.
The spelling on your passport is the spelling you must use everywhere else — including your English test booking.
Passport fees have been revised more than once. Treat these as a planning guide and confirm the current amount on the portal before you pay — the department publishes the live schedule.
Ordinary 34-page passport, normal service: NPR 5,000
Fast-track, at the department in Kathmandu only: NPR 12,000
Normal processing: around 15 working days or more
Fast-track processing: a few working days
Plan on the slow number. Intake deadlines don't care that the queue was long, and a fast-track passport still needs you to be in Kathmandu twice.
Passport pre-enrolment portal
Department of Passports
Your District Administration Office (DAO)
Citizenship certificate
The original. This is the document a Nepali passport is issued against — if you don't have it yet, that is your first stop, not this one.
Pre-enrolment slip
Printed from the online portal, with your appointment details.
Previous passport
If you are renewing. It is usually cancelled and returned to you — keep it, old visas are useful evidence of travel history.
Minor applicants
Applicants under 16 need a birth certificate and their parents' documents, and a parent has to attend.
Can someone else collect my passport for me?
Enrolment always requires you in person because it captures biometrics. Collection rules are set by the issuing office and can allow an authorised representative with documentation — ask at the counter when you enrol rather than assuming either way.
My passport expires while I am studying. Do I renew before I leave?
Almost always yes. Renewing from abroad means dealing with a Nepali mission in your host country, which is slower and can leave you without a passport during a visa or work-permit process. If it expires within your course, renew now.
Does a fast-track passport look different or cause visa problems?
No. It is the same document issued on a shorter timeline. The service level is not visible to the mission assessing your visa.
I live outside Kathmandu. Do I have to travel?
Not for a normal passport — district administration offices enrol applicants. You will still need to reach Kathmandu later for biometrics or an interview at most missions, so factor that trip in separately.