KATHMANDU, Nov 2: The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed local administrations to halt illegal tax collection on roads by municipalities, following complaints from transport operators about unauthorized tax imposition.
The ministry issued this directive to all 77 district administration offices across the country in the last week of October.
The Ministry of Home Affairs stated, "According to the letter from the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport (Transport Management Branch) dated October 27, the collection of various types of taxes by local governments on national highways and feeder roads was halted following a decision by the Government of Nepal (Council of Ministers) on December 3, 2018. After correspondence with the Ministry of Finance, this matter was stopped. As various local governments are reportedly collecting taxes, we request the relevant district administration offices/agencies to issue directives to halt these activities and coordinate as necessary."
Home Ministry directs all District Administration Offices to su...
Earlier, transport entrepreneurs had met with Minister of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Devendra Dahal to draw attention to the illegal collection of taxes and urged him to put an end to this practice.
Saroj Sitaula, senior vice president of the Federation of Nepalese National Transport Entrepreneurs, stated that he submitted a letter of concern to the Ministry of Transport on October 24, urging to stop the collection of illegal taxes by local governments.
Based on that letter, the Transport Ministry communicated to the Home Ministry on October 27. The Home Ministry subsequently wrote to all district administration offices across the country.
Sitaula stated that since various municipalities across the country are continuing the collection of taxes that the federal government had ordered to stop, we hope that necessary directives from the Home Ministry will lead to the cessation of such activities.
A cabinet meeting held in 2018 had decided to halt the collection of unauthorized taxes. The Ministry of Finance has already prepared and implemented an action plan for the enforcement of this decision.
