Agencies quote one number, and it is often far more than the law allows. Pick your country, your route, the contract and your age to see every official charge on its own line, who it is paid to and the document it comes from. The permit is free, most of what you pay is a deposit, and the SSF part stays in your name.
What you pay for a labour permit
- The labour permit: free — for a new permit through an agency, on your own, or a re-entry permit (DoFE citizen charter).
- Welfare fund: Rs 1,500 for a contract up to 3 years, Rs 2,500 for longer (Foreign Employment Rules, rule 24). It pays for rescue, compensation and scholarships for workers' children.
- Term life insurance: from Rs 2,629, by age and contract length — Rs 3,708 for a 2-year contract at 18–35 (Nepal Insurance Authority directive 2080). The table is below.
- Social Security Fund: Rs 2,595, one month before the permit — 21.33% of the minimum basic wage of Rs 12,170.
- Pre-departure orientation: Rs 700 for two days; refunded to women, and not needed again for the same country.
- Medical check: Rs 6,500 at an approved centre — the ministry's fee since December 2025, known from news reports; the employer pays for Malaysia.
- Agency service fee: at most Rs 10,000 for Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, and nothing for Malaysia and the UAE — see below.
Re-entry (renewal) cost
A re-entry labour permit (पुनः श्रम स्वीकृति) is free as well, and since 1 June 2026 one for the same country and company is approved on its own. You pay the deposits again: the welfare fund, insurance for the new period and a month of SSF. For a 2-year renewal at 18–35 that is Rs 7,803 — no orientation and no medical in Nepal. A re-entry permit lasts at most two years. Step by step: how to renew online.
What a manpower agency may charge
For the seven "free visa, free ticket" countries — Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and Malaysia — the employer pays the visa and the air ticket, and an agency may take Rs 10,000 at most. Under the agreements with Malaysia and the UAE the employer pays the agency as well, so you pay nothing. These come from the Cabinet decision of 2015 as the Kathmandu Post reported it in April and August 2026; the decision's own text is not online.
For other countries no ceiling was found in any notice. Ask DoFE on toll-free 1140 before you pay. Whatever you pay, pay it only at the agency's own office or into its bank account, after the visa is issued, and take a receipt (Foreign Employment Act, section 24). Never pay a broker, a consultancy or a travel agent.
Why insurance costs more after 35
The cover is the same at every age: Rs 10 lakh on death (Rs 14 lakh in all if it happens abroad, with the funeral, lost income and bringing the body home), Rs 10 lakh for permanent disability, Rs 5 lakh for a critical illness and up to Rs 1 lakh of treatment. The premium rises with age, in three bands: 18–35, 36–50 and 51–64. Over 64 the insurer sets it, at most one and a half times the 51–64 rate.
How to complain about overcharging
- File it online at ujuri.dofe.gov.np, from Nepal or abroad, with the receipt or any proof of what you paid.
- Or call DoFE's toll-free number, 1140.
- In Nepal you can also go to the Chief District Officer of any district; abroad, to the Nepali embassy. Both pass it to DoFE.
- Do it within a year — or within a year of coming home. If the agency overcharged, DoFE makes it refund you and fines it Rs 1 lakh (Foreign Employment Act, sections 53 and 60).
Where these figures come from
Each line in the calculator links its source. Read on 28 October 2026 (FY 2083/84): the DoFE citizen charter (December 2025), the Foreign Employment Rules 2064, the Nepal Insurance Authority's term life directive 2080, the Social Security Fund's contribution rate and the Foreign Employment Act 2064. The medical fee and the agency ceilings rest on news reports, and are marked that way.
An amendment to the Foreign Employment Act is in draft. It would make employers pay, fold the insurance into the welfare fund and set a new agency fee. If it passes, these figures change, and this page will too.
Labour permit insurance premium by age and contract length
Nepal Insurance Authority's table for Rs 10 lakh of cover, with the compulsory Rs 400 critical-illness cover added. The policy runs six months longer than the contract.
| Contract | Age 18–35 | Age 36–50 | Age 51–64 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year (1.5-year policy) | Rs 2,629 | Rs 3,663 | Rs 8,014 |
| 2 years (2.5-year policy) | Rs 3,708 | Rs 4,931 | Rs 9,463 |
| 3 years (3.5-year policy) | Rs 4,511 | Rs 6,152 | Rs 11,565 |
| 4 years (4.5-year policy) | Rs 5,376 | Rs 7,251 | Rs 13,939 |
| 5 years (5.5-year policy) | Rs 6,063 | Rs 8,216 | Rs 15,950 |
| 6 years (6.5-year policy) | Rs 6,605 | Rs 9,512 | Rs 18,622 |
Common questions
How much does shram swikriti cost in Nepal?
The permit itself is free. The charges around it come to about Rs 15,000 for a 2-year contract at age 18–35: welfare fund Rs 1,500, insurance Rs 3,708, one month of SSF Rs 2,595, orientation Rs 700 and the medical Rs 6,500. Through an agency to the Gulf, add at most Rs 10,000.
Is the labour permit free?
Yes. DoFE charges nothing for a new labour permit or a re-entry permit, whether you go through an agency or on your own. What you pay are the welfare fund, insurance, SSF, orientation and medical.
How much does shram renewal (re-entry) cost?
The re-entry permit is free; you pay the welfare fund again (Rs 1,500), insurance for the new period and a month of SSF (Rs 2,595). For a 2-year renewal at 18–35, Rs 7,803 in all.
How much can a manpower agency charge for a Gulf job?
At most Rs 10,000 for Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, and nothing for Malaysia and the UAE, where the employer pays the agency. The employer pays the visa and the ticket. Pay only at the agency's office or bank account, with a receipt.
Do I get the SSF money back?
It is not a fee. Of the 21.33% you pay, 13.85% goes into your own old-age account and 7.48% insures you against accident and disability and covers your dependents.
Why is my insurance more than my friend's?
The premium depends on your age band (18–35, 36–50, 51–64) and on the length of the policy, which runs six months longer than the contract. The cover is the same: Rs 10 lakh, or Rs 14 lakh in all on death abroad.
श्रम स्वीकृति गर्न कति पैसा लाग्छ?
श्रम स्वीकृति आफैं निःशुल्क छ। २ वर्षको सम्झौता र १८–३५ वर्षको उमेरमा कल्याणकारी कोष रु १,५००, बीमा रु ३,७०८, सामाजिक सुरक्षा कोष रु २,५९५, अभिमुखीकरण रु ७०० र स्वास्थ्य परीक्षण रु ६,५०० — जम्मा करिब रु १५,०००। खाडी मुलुकका लागि म्यानपावरले बढीमा रु १०,००० लिन पाउँछ।
In this topic
Working abroad from Nepal
Every paper between a job offer and the airport, the CV that gets the offer, and the pay once you are there.
The foreign employment process, step by step — the whole subject in one place
The papers, in order
- Passport: online form, fee and renewal
- Police report online
- Labour permit (shram swikriti)
- Labour permit cost calculator
- Visa check by passport number
Getting the job
- Getting a job in Dubai, legally
- CV for Gulf jobs
- EPS-TOPIK for work in Korea
- EPS-TOPIK practice test
- CV for the UK, Canada and Australia
- Europass CV for Europe
The money
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