Government Offices

Ministries, departments, ward offices and service centres, with addresses, opening hours and - the part that saves a wasted day - the documents each one actually asks for.

Before you travel to one

• Check which tier handles it. A great deal of what people assume is central is handled at the ward office nearest their house. All Nepal covers the three tiers and which does what.
• Bring originals, not photocopies, plus more passport photographs than you think you need.
• Check the hours. Offices close earlier than you expect, and counters often stop accepting new applications well before closing.
• Allow for festival closures, which take days at a time through the autumn. Events and festivals covers the calendar.
• Expect to need a recommendation letter from your ward office for things that seem unrelated to it. It is routine, cheap and quick.

Government and administration covers how the system is structured and why that determines which queue you join. Foreign nationals should read legal and government, and anything about visas is at visa and immigration - immigration is federal and concentrated in Kathmandu, so do not assume a local office can help.

Corrections

Office addresses, hours and document requirements change, and these listings are dated so you can judge them. If you find something out of date, tell us - a correction here saves somebody else a day.

The offices most people actually need

In rough order of how often foreign residents visit them: the ward office, for residence and relationship certificates and the recommendation letters other offices ask for; the Department of Immigration in Kathmandu, for visas and permits; the district administration office, for a range of certifications; and the ministry or department relevant to a work permit or an investment.

Start at the ward office even when the matter feels central. It is the cheapest, nearest and fastest of the four, and it frequently issues the document the others want to see.