CBMS and e-billing limits in Nepal (2083/84)
Who has to connect to CBMS, who has to use IRD-approved billing software, and when a restaurant has to register for VAT — each figure with the notice it comes from, and a plain note where only news reports back it.
The short answer
A business with annual turnover above NPR 20 crore has to issue its invoices electronically and send each one to CBMS — the Inland Revenue Department’s Central Billing Monitoring System — at the moment it is issued. That is the department-wide rule, from the IRD notice of 4 Baishakh 2083. The 2083/84 budget announced bringing businesses above NPR 10 crore that already issue e-bills into CBMS too, and at least one tax office has issued that notice; a department-wide notice at 10 crore had not appeared when this page was written.
Separately, restaurants, hotels and canteens are widely reported to need IRD-approved billing software above NPR 5 crore in turnover. And any restaurant has to register for VAT once its turnover passes Rs 30 lakh.
Every threshold, with its source
These are four different obligations, which is why the numbers people quote never seem to agree.
| Obligation | Threshold (annual turnover) | Source | How firm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Issue e-invoices and connect to CBMS at issue | Above NPR 20 crore (banks not dealing directly with consumers excepted) | IRD notice, 4 Baishakh 2083 (≈17 April 2026) | IRD’s own notice |
| Connect to CBMS, for businesses already issuing e-bills | Above NPR 10 crore | Budget speech 2083/84, point 70(ख); applied by IRO Baglung, 2083/03/05 | Announced; one office notice so far |
| Use IRD-approved billing software — hotels, restaurants, canteens | Above NPR 5 crore | Finance Act 2079, as reported in the news | News reports; we have not seen the IRD text |
| Use IRD-approved billing software — other businesses | Above NPR 10 crore | Finance Act 2079, as reported in the news | News reports; we have not seen the IRD text |
| Register for VAT — restaurants and other services | Above Rs 30 lakh | VAT Rules 2053, rule 6(1), as amended in 2081 | The rules themselves |
| Register for VAT — goods only | Above Rs 50 lakh | VAT Rules 2053, rule 6(1), as amended in 2081 | The rules themselves |
How the CBMS threshold has moved
The CBMS limit has come down step by step, and each step brings more businesses in.
- NPR 35 crore — the earlier IRD notice
- NPR 25 crore — from around December 2023, as reported in the news
- NPR 20 crore — IRD notice of 4 Baishakh 2083 (the notice cites an IRD decision of 2082/12/27; one tax office’s copy says 2082/12/26)
- NPR 10 crore — announced in the 2083/84 budget for businesses already issuing e-bills
Billing from the cloud: a rule worth asking about
The Electronic Billing Procedure 2074, as amended, has a clause that is easy to miss: clause 4(ङ) says a taxpayer issuing invoices from a cloud-based computing system sends each invoice to CBMS as it is issued — and the clause names no turnover figure. Read plainly, a cafe running cloud billing software with e-billing permission may need CBMS filing below every threshold above. How the department applies it is a question for your tax office or accountant, not for a software vendor.
TableSathi is cloud software, enlisted with the IRD, and files invoices and credit notes to CBMS — so whichever way that question is answered for your cafe, filing is already built in.
What is not a rule (yet)
Some sites say every VAT-registered business must now e-invoice through a new IRD portal, whatever its turnover. We could not find an IRD notice saying so. Others still say restaurants with a bar must register for VAT whatever their turnover; the IRD’s own FAQ says the Finance Act 2078 removed that compulsory registration. And the “new IRD bill format from Shrawan 1, 2083” that circulated on social media is real but narrow: it covers luxury fees on five-star hotels and imported liquor, and fees on gold and silver — not ordinary restaurants and cafes.
What a restaurant should do
Work out which row of the table you are in, and plan for the one above it.
- Below Rs 30 lakh: PAN bills are fine; number them in sequence and keep copies
- Above Rs 30 lakh: register for VAT within 30 days and issue tax invoices
- Approaching NPR 5 crore: move to IRD-approved billing software before you cross it, not after
- Approaching NPR 10 crore: expect CBMS filing to apply — choose software that already files, so the switch is a setting rather than a migration
Common questions.
What is the CBMS limit in Nepal?+
Under the IRD notice of 4 Baishakh 2083, taxpayers with annual turnover above NPR 20 crore must issue invoices electronically and connect them to CBMS, the Central Billing Monitoring System, at the moment of issue; banks and financial institutions that do not invoice consumers directly are excepted. The 2083/84 budget announced extending CBMS to businesses above NPR 10 crore that already issue e-bills, and at least one tax office has issued a notice applying it.
What is CBMS?+
CBMS is the Inland Revenue Department’s Central Billing Monitoring System. Approved billing software sends each invoice — and each sales return, as a credit note — to CBMS as it is issued, so the department sees sales in real time rather than at the end of the tax period. The connection is made by the billing software using the taxpayer’s own IRD credentials.
Does a small restaurant need IRD-approved billing software?+
Widely reported thresholds put the requirement at NPR 5 crore in annual turnover for hotels, restaurants and canteens. Below that a restaurant can issue PAN or VAT bills from any system as long as they are correctly numbered and kept — though if it uses cloud billing with e-billing permission, the Procedure’s clause on cloud systems may bring in CBMS filing anyway. Ask your accountant which applies to you.
What is the VAT registration limit for restaurants in Nepal?+
Rs 30 lakh in annual turnover for a business selling services, or goods and services together as a restaurant does, under rule 6(1) of the VAT Rules 2053 as amended in 2081 (it was Rs 20 lakh before). For goods alone it is Rs 50 lakh. You must apply within 30 days of crossing it, and you can register earlier voluntarily.
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