Restricted-area permits for west Nepal: fees for Humla, Mugu, Dolpa, Bajhang and Darchula

Restricted-area trekking in Nepal is controlled by a special permit, and in the west it applies to Humla, Mugu, Bajhang, Darchula and Dolpa. This page sets out the rules and the fee table as the Department of Immigration and the Nepal Tourism Board publish them, with the wards each permit covers. The wider permit pages are in the permits hub; the district pages for Humla and Mugu cover the places themselves. To add up the permits and park tickets for your own route and days, use the permit and fee calculator.

The rule

The Nepal Tourism Board’s trekking permit page gives the basics in three lines¹:

A trekking permit must be obtained from the Department of Immigration, Kalikasthan, Kathmandu, to visit restricted areas.¹

Trekking in any area or along any route except the specified area or route is deemed to be a violation of law.¹

The permit should be kept with the trekker while trekking, and shown to immigration employees or police on request.¹

Foreign trekkers going to certain restricted areas must hold a permit from the Department of Immigration by law. Because these areas are sensitive for security and management, the Department issues it only through a registered trekking agency³. A special trekking permit is needed for areas that fall under the Restricted Zone¹.

Fees by area

In October 2026 the Department of Immigration’s trekking route and permit fee table carried 15 restricted-area entries². Fees are in US dollars, and the “beyond” column is the charge after the first period:

For Upper Mustang and Upper Dolpa, if the royalty paid for a mountain expedition is less than the permit fee, the difference must be paid separately².

Reading the fee table

The table uses four fee shapes, and the shape matters as much as the headline number².

• Per week, then per day. Humla, Mugu, Bajhang, Darchula and Lower Dolpa charge a weekly fee, then a daily rate after week 1². The daily rate is USD 10 in Humla, USD 15 in Mugu, Bajhang and Darchula, and USD 5 in Lower Dolpa².
• Per day throughout. Upper Mustang is USD 50 per person per day².
• Per period, then per day. Upper Dolpa is USD 500 per person for the first 10 days, then USD 50 per day².
• By season. Manang and Gorkha Manaslu charge USD 100 per week from September to November and USD 75 per week from December to August². Gorkha Tsum Valley charges USD 40 per week from September to November and USD 30 per week from December to August².

Three areas, Taplejung, Sankhuwasabha and Solukhumbu, charge USD 20 per week for the first 4 weeks, then USD 25 per week². Dolakha and Rasuwa are USD 20 per person per week².

For the five west Nepal areas, the cheapest week is Lower Dolpa at USD 20, and the dearest is Upper Dolpa, where the first 10 days cost USD 500². Mugu, at USD 100 per week, is the dearest of the weekly west Nepal rows².

The west Nepal areas

Humla. The permit covers three rural municipalities by ward: Simikot, Namkha and Changkheli². Humla lies in the far west of Nepal on the border with China and is used as the starting point for trekking and mountaineering⁴. The trekking route to Tibet also starts from Simikot⁴. The treks are in Limi Valley trek and Humla to Kailash, and the pilgrim side is in Kailash via Humla.

Mugu. At USD 100 per person per week in October 2026, the Mugu permit applies to Mugumakarmarong Rural Municipality wards 1 to 9². The district page is Mugu.

Bajhang and Darchula. Both were USD 90 per person per week in October 2026, with USD 15 per day beyond the first week². Bajhang’s entry names Saipal Rural Municipality, wards 1 to 5, and Darchula’s names Vyas Rural Municipality, ward 1². The treks are Saipal base camp and Api base camp.

Dolpa. The October 2026 table splits Dolpa in two². Lower Dolpa is the cheaper, at USD 20 per person per week; Upper Dolpa is USD 500 per person for the first 10 days and USD 50 per day after that². The routes are in Upper Dolpo trek and Lower Dolpo trek.

When the two government pages disagree

In October 2026 the Nepal Tourism Board’s trekking permit page listed Charka Tangsong Rural Municipality, wards 1 to 6, at USD 50 per person per day¹; the Department of Immigration’s table puts that municipality under Upper Dolpa². The Department, the office the Board names for the permit, listed USD 500 for the first 10 days and USD 50 per day beyond 10 days². The Department’s figure is used throughout this page, and the Nepal Tourism Board’s Humla figure of USD 50 per person per week, with USD 10 per day beyond one week, matches it¹.

Park-entry charges sit on top of a permit; Rara National Park’s, for example, are covered in national park fees.