First-Time Labour Approval for Foreign Employment from Nepal

Eligibility

• A Nepali citizen aged 18 or older preparing to leave Nepal for foreign employment
• A worker with a genuine job, destination-appropriate work visa or permit, and employment contract
• An applicant using the approval route that matches the job: licensed recruitment agency, individual employer or a specific government-to-government programme
• For the individual FEIMS route described in detail: a worker whose own employer/job offer is not being processed as an institutional recruitment-agency case

Required documents checklist

• □ Valid passport; FEIMS uses the passport number to identify or create the individual user
• □ Destination-appropriate work visa, permit or official authorization
• □ Employment contract or agreement showing employer, job, salary, benefits and term
• □ Employer and destination details that match the visa and contract
• □ Valid medical fitness record from an institution accepted for the destination and process
• □ Required pre-departure orientation record from an authorized provider
• □ Foreign-employment term life-insurance record for the applicable period
• □ Foreign Employment Welfare Fund contribution record
• □ Any destination-, occupation-, embassy-attestation or route-specific record requested by the live FEIMS form or DoFE
• □ Receipts and copies of every submitted and paid record

Step-by-step process

1. Classify the route before uploading anything. A licensed manpower-company case, individual approval and government-to-government programme do not share one workflow.
2. Verify a recruitment agency in DoFE's official records when one is involved. For an individual offer, independently verify the employer, work location, job, salary, benefits, deductions and contract term.
3. Compare the passport number and name across the visa or permit, contract, medical, orientation, insurance and every supporting record. Resolve mismatches before submission.
4. Open the official FEIMS service from dofe.gov.np. For a first individual file, use the New Individual Login; the live page uses the passport number to find or create the user.
5. Complete only the route-specific fields and uploads shown by the live FEIMS form. Do not reuse a re-entry tutorial or let an agent choose a route that does not match the facts.
6. Complete medical, orientation, insurance and Welfare Fund steps only through currently authorized or system-recognized channels, keeping official receipts.
7. Review the final submission, respond to a DoFE correction request inside the official channel, and do not pay unrecorded cash for a promise of approval.
8. Confirm final labour approval in the official system. Download and save the approval and leave copies of the passport, visa, contract, receipts and approval with a trusted person.
9. Use Nepal's authorized departure route and carry the records needed for departure and arrival. Do not travel for work on a visa alone or while the file is merely submitted.

Fees and timelines

• DoFE's current public pages reviewed do not publish one all-in first-time labour-approval price. Total cost depends on the route, destination, insurance term, Welfare Fund contribution, medical, orientation and any destination-specific requirement.
• Pay only amounts generated or directed by the official system or an authorized provider. Keep an itemized receipt; an agent's cash quote is not an official fee schedule.
• DoFE does not promise one processing time for every first-time case on the reviewed pages. Route, record matching, verification and correction requests affect the result.
• A submitted application is not an approval. Wait for the official final status before committing to departure.

Common mistakes

• Treating a work visa, FEIMS submission or payment receipt as final labour approval
• Using the re-entry route for a first job, new country or changed employer
• Allowing an unlicensed agent to control the FEIMS account or keep the passport
• Accepting a contract whose salary, job, employer or benefits differ from the promise
• Entering a passport number or name differently across FEIMS and supporting records
• Using a medical, orientation or insurance provider without checking current acceptance
• Paying cash without a receipt or paying a personal account for a claimed government fee
• Buying a non-refundable ticket before final approval
• Leaving home without copies of the contract, approval, insurance and payment proof

Office and portal links

FAQ