Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce & Industry (NICCI) appraised various issues including repatriation of dividends and salaries of foreign employees, hassle in payments for cross-border services and effectiveness of single window service to the central bank.

The team of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce & Industry (NICCI) led by the President of NICCI Sunil KC met with newly appointed governor of the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) Dr. Biswonath Poudel on Wednesday, May 28, at his office and appraised him of various issues faced by the Indian multinational companies (MNCs) in Nepal.

Congratulating Dr. Poudel for being appointed as the 18th Governor of NRB, KC appraised him of the gamut of issues faced by the Indian joint venture companies in Nepal, and requested to help facilitate them. “Indian joint ventures are Nepal’s major stakeholders in economic growth and employment creation,” he said, asking the central bank governor to help facilitate the foreign investors.

Berger Paints’ Saibal Gosh apprised the Governor Poudel of the lengthy process of repatriation and asked for the speedy process. “To repatriate dividends, companies must obtain NRB approval, submit audited financial statements, tax clearance certificates, and verify that profits were earned through operations permitted under FDI norms,” he said, adding that foreign employees must individually seek NRB approval to repatriate their salaries, which involves bank documentation, employment contracts, and proof of income tax paid and only 70 percent of the salary is allowed to repatriate which need to be reviewed.

Likewise, Sumitra KC from the Legal Department of Dabur Nepal requested the governor to do away with duplication of paper works due to the not so effective Single Window Service Centre. 

Similarly, Executive Director of GoldStar Shoes Vidushi Rana also requested the Governor to facilitate in getting the export incentives, as it will help make Nepali products competitive in the foreign markets.

On the occasion, National Insurance’s Chief Executive Officer Navneet Gupta requested the central bank to increase the cash limit carried by the Indian tourists visiting Nepal. 

Likewise, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Asian Paints Sameer Shrestha requested the governor to be liberal in restrictions on outward remittances. “Paying for technical services, consultancy, software licensing, and digital services outside Nepal—including from India—requires prior NRB approval, especially for amounts above a certain threshold of INR 100,000 for the Indian companies and US$5,000 for third country companies operating in Nepal, which need to be reviewed at par with the current market and practice,” he added.

Similarly, chairman of Sanima GIC Kunal Kayal requested the Governor to make the Working Capital Guideline more practical, and timely.

In response, Governor Poudel informed the team that he has already given instruction to concerned departments so as to allow for the repatriation procedure to be concluded within 14 days after receiving application. He also assured that the genuine issues which come under the NRB domain would be looked at very positively to solve them.