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| Kathmandu, Friday April 26, 2002 Baishakh 13, 2059. |
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Govt to introduce NRN visa
By Satyendra
Timilsina
KATHMANDU, April 25 :
Responding to the long-running demand of Non-Resident Nepalis (NRNs) to provide them with
special concessions for carrying out trading and industrial activities in Nepal, the
government is all set to introduce a new visa scheme for them.
According to a
high-level Home Ministry source, the special visa would be valid for ten years and would
be provided to the NRNs willing to stay in Nepal either for academic pursuit, establishing
business or carrying out researches.
"The Ministry has
finalised the draft and is currently busy on looking into the finer details of its legal
aspects," said the source.
It is likely that the
new provision would get endorsed by the Cabinet within a week, informed the source adding,
"The visa would be provided at a minimal fee and can be used for several entries
within the specified period."
The government during
the budget presentation for the current fiscal year had announced to provide special
concessions to NRNs in the wake of the Indian announcement to attract investment from
Non-Resident Indians. And the latest is the first step taken to this direction.
NRNs from Thailand and
Burma had been asking their respective embassies to provide them with special facilities
to allow educating their children in Nepal. Likewise, professional NRNs including doctors,
engineers and other technical personnel staying in Europe and the United States also have
shown their willingness to serve in Nepal. The NRNs from Commonwealth of Independent
States (CIS) are also demanding such facilities to start business in Nepal.
The ministry has
proposed to charge an annual fee of US $ 50 for new visa scheme applicable for the
students, researchers and businessmen. However, the annual fee for those willing to spend
retired life in Nepal would be US $ 1200, said the source.
According to the new
provision, any NRN willing to receive the NRN visa under new scheme will have to apply to
their respective embassies or the consular offices. With the new scheme in the offing more
than one hundred thousand NRNs, who are currently using foreign passports to enter Nepal,
are expected to be benefited.
While in the United
States alone more than 40,000 NRNs are estimated, a considerable number of NRNs stay in
Australia, Europe, Hong Kong, Thailand and Burma among other countries.
Along with new visa
proposal the ministry is also presenting a proposal to materialise the previous decision
to slash visa-fee and reduce its category, informed the source.
The government last
December had announced a reduction of visa fees for single entry from US $ 50 to US $ 30
for the duration of more than two months, while the multiple visa fees was brought down
from US $ 110 to US $ 80. According to the revised visa fees, renewal fee for a tourist
visa would be US $ 30 a reduction of US $ 20 from the earlier fee of US $ 50.
Visa categories were
reduced to two removing double-visa category from previous categories of single, double
and multiple. The government then had announced that foreigners holding multiple-visa
would be allowed to stay for a maximum of five months with several entries within a
period.
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