Image: via nepalauto.com
The government says the long backlog of smart driving licence printing has finally been cleared, and new licences will now be printed much faster for applicants across Nepal.
27 lakh smart licences printed
According to a recent press release from the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, the Security Printing Centre has completed printing 27 lakh smart driving licences based on data received from the Department of Transport Management (DoTM).
This was done under two separate agreements between the ministry, the Security Printing Centre and the DoTM:
- In the first phase, an agreement signed in Kartik 2082 targeted the printing of 12 lakh smart licences within a fixed deadline. The ministry says this target has been met.
- In the second phase, a new agreement was signed on 4 Baisakh 2083 to manage the remaining applications by printing an additional 15 lakh licences. This work has now been completed as well, with the final batch finished by the end of Asar 2083.
With this, the ministry claims that the long-standing backlog of unprinted smart licences – applications already approved but waiting for physical cards – has been fully cleared.
New licences to be printed within 24 hours
The ministry also states that new smart driving licences will now be printed much faster. Once the Security Printing Centre receives complete applicant data from the Department of Transport Management, it has committed to print the licence and hand it over to the department within 24 hours, according to the announcement.
This new arrangement is expected to:
- Reduce the waiting time for new licence cards after applicants pass their driving tests
- Help keep future backlogs close to zero if data sharing and printing continue smoothly
- Make it easier for transport offices to distribute cards regularly to service seekers
What this means for licence applicants
For Nepali vehicle users who have already passed their driving test and were waiting months or even years for their smart licence card, the government’s statement suggests that their cards should now be printed and available at their respective transport offices, depending on local distribution.
For new applicants, the key change is on the printing side: once their details are forwarded from the DoTM to the Security Printing Centre, the physical smart card is supposed to be ready for the department within a day. Actual delivery to the applicant will still depend on how quickly the local office manages distribution.
The ministry has not announced any change in the existing application, trial or renewal procedures, so drivers should continue to follow the current process at their transport office or online system. However, if the new printing timeline is implemented as promised, the overall licence wait time should gradually become much shorter for Nepali motorists.
Reported by the Nepal AutoMart news desk. Prices verified against Nepal AutoMart's own distributor-sourced data.