Mustang. Foreign tourists visiting Upper Mustang, a restricted region bordering China’s Korala Pass in northern Nepal, will now be required to pay a daily fee of USD 50.
The decision was announced by government spokesperson and Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Jagadish Kharel, while making public the latest Cabinet decisions. He said the government amended Schedule 12 of the Immigration Regulation, 1994, to implement the new fee structure.
With this decision, the long-standing provision requiring foreign tourists to pay a flat fee of USD 500 for a mandatory 10-day trekking permit has been removed. Travelers will now have to pay only for the exact number of days they stay in Upper Mustang.
Previously, all foreign visitors entering Upper Mustang were required to purchase a 10-day permit at USD 500. Those staying beyond 10 days were charged an additional USD 50 per person per day.
Lhomanthang Rural Municipality Chair Tashi Nherbu Gurung and Lho Ghekar Damodar Kunda Rural Municipality Chair Lopsang Chomfel Bista both welcomed the government’s decision. They noted that although their demand was to remove Upper Mustang from the restricted and controlled area list entirely, the government’s move partially addresses their concerns.
Upper Mustang falls under the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) and is categorized as a restricted region by the government. High trekking fees have long discouraged many international tourists from entering Upper Mustang, leading most visitors to return from Kagbeni or Muktinath instead.
Although nearly 150,000 foreign tourists visit Mustang annually, only about 3–4 percent continue their journey into Upper Mustang.
