MP Gagan Thapa offers his services to help resolve custom Issues

By Saugat Kandel

After the Government of Nepal introduced new customs regulations on the supplies being sent to Nepal, there has been a lot of confusion about whether the relief materials are taxed. We have previously shared some instructions on how to clear customs for relief materials in the Tribhuvan International Airport in Nepal. Since then, a Member of the Parilament, Gagan Thapa, has offered the services of his out-of-parliament office to help resolve any problems encountered during this process. Here is his Facebook post in its entirety:

If you are having any problem sending relief materials to Nepal my out-of-parliament office will be happy to help. You can call 01-4480303 anytime between 10 AM to 5 PM.
As per the information we got following is the process to send the relief material without customs charges.
To send :

1. The one sending the relief material has to send it to a social organization it can be NGO, INGO or a registered community club.
2. Please have the name and address written or printed clearly.

To receive :

1. The receiving organization needs to be a social organization as states above.
2. The receiving organization needs to bring a letter in their stamped letter head stating the purpose of the relief material and where they will distribute it. They will also need to submit cargo list or packing list.
3. They need to declare the total worth of the relief item and sign a contract stating how and where it will be distributed.
4. After the distribution , the social organization needs to make a report of distribution and get it approved by the local governing body at the distributed area , can be police, army or any government authority. Nepal customs will then followup on the issue later with the local bodies and in case the local body will not be able to provide authentic letter , total custom of that consignment will be charged to the local social organization