TIMS card explained: do you still need one in Nepal?

The TIMS card (Trekkers' Information Management System) is an agency-issued registration that the Nepal Tourism Board pairs with a licensed guide on a list of protected-area routes, under a revised provision effective 31 March 2023. Agencies buy it on the Board's online system and each trekker gets an eCard with a QR code. In practice in 2026, operator reports say it is checked in Langtang and some other regions, varies in Annapurna and is not used in Khumbu, where the municipality issues its own trek card. So the honest answer to "do I still need one" is: usually yes if you book through an agency, and your agency will tell you.

This guide separates what the Board writes from what checkpoints do, because the two differ, and explains how it fits with the permits you pay for yourself. For the rest of the permit picture start with Nepal trekking permits explained.

What the TIMS card is

TIMS began as a safety register: a record of who is on which trail, so that rescue and police can find trekkers. The Nepal Tourism Board's page describes the current version. Trekking agencies register on the online system and buy the card, and each trekker then receives an eCard with a QR code. The page also tells would-be trekkers to contact a government-registered trekking agency to arrange a guide and the TIMS card.

It is not an entry permit. Entry to a national park or conservation area is a separate permit with its own fee: as of October 2026, NPR 3,000 for foreigners for Sagarmatha, Langtang, Makalu Barun, Rara or Shey Phoksundo National Parks and for the Annapurna and Manaslu Conservation Areas, NPR 2,000 for Kanchenjunga and NPR 1,000 for Shivapuri Nagarjun. A restricted-area permit is a third, separate document.

What changed in March 2023

The page refers to a "Revised TIMS Provision effective from March 31, 2023", and states that specific protected areas need the trekker to be accompanied by a licensed trekking guide. This is the basis of the April 2023 guide rule that our other pages describe: a licensed guide through a registered agency is required under the Nepal Tourism Board rule of April 2023 in national parks and conservation areas.

The Board's list of covered regions is long: Kanchenjunga, Makalu Barun, Everest, Rolwaling, Panchpokhari Bhairabkunda, Helambu, Langtang, Ganesh Himal-Ruby Valley, Manaslu, Annapurna, Mustang, Dhaulagiri, Dolpo and Humla, with examples such as Everest Base Camp, Gokyo, the Manaslu Circuit, the Annapurna Circuit, Upper Mustang and Upper Dolpo. Read that list as what the Board published, not as what every checkpoint enforces. The page does not give an end date for the provision.

What checkpoints actually do

The written rule and the practice are not the same, and this is where trekkers get confused. Our pack records the position as of 19 October 2026 from 2026 operator reports, which are not official:

In Khumbu, the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu municipality publicly opted out of the guide rule within days of the announcement, according to the Kathmandu Post of 3 April 2023, and issues its own trek card instead: NPR 3,000 for foreigners as of October 2026 (NPR 2,000 for SAARC countries and China), bought near Lukla. TIMS is not required on the Everest route; if an agency quotes it, ask why. Read the guide rule for foreigners explained and the guide rule by region for the sources.

Our pack's guide-rule sentence is the safest summary: a licensed guide through a registered agency is required in restricted areas, and under the Nepal Tourism Board rule of April 2023 in national parks and conservation areas, where 2026 operator reports say checkpoints enforce it in Annapurna and Langtang but not in Khumbu (checked 19 October 2026). TIMS follows the same pattern, patchily.

How much it costs

Our cost data records TIMS at NPR 2,000 for applicants from outside SAARC and NPR 1,000 for SAARC applicants (Nepal Tourism Board TIMS page, checked 19 October 2026). The page does not date the fee, and the agency that issues the card usually adds its own service charge. Confirm the total with your agency, and make sure it is itemised in your quote, because a card the agency buys for you is usually folded into the package price.

What you do in practice

Most foreigners never fill in a TIMS form themselves. If you book a guide or an agency for an Annapurna, Langtang or Manaslu trek, ask three questions (on the Everest route TIMS is not required):

• Is a TIMS card included in the quote, and in whose name is it issued?
• Does the agency expect it to be checked on my route this season?
• Which other permits does the quote cover, and which will I pay for at a counter?

Carry the QR eCard on your phone and a printed copy, along with your passport and paper permits. Checkpoints such as Birethanti, Besisahar, Dhunche and Syabrubesi inspect documents, and Monjo checks the Sagarmatha permit. If a checkpoint asks for a document you do not have, the cost is usually a day in Kathmandu or Pokhara. See where to buy trekking permits in Kathmandu and Pokhara.

Why it matters for sharing a guide

TIMS is tied to a licensed guide, so for a trekking partner it is not an individual choice. Two people who want to share a guide have to book through the same registered agency, and both need their own eCard. That makes it one of the things to settle before you commit: who pays the agency, and what happens to the second person's card if one of you drops out. Use the Annapurna Circuit partner page, the Langtang Valley partner page or the Everest Base Camp partner page to find company, and read what to agree with trekking partners before you book.

Region by region

For Langtang the permit set is a Langtang National Park entry permit plus TIMS where required; see the Langtang National Park permit guide and the Langtang Valley route page. Note that conditions in Langtang changed after the August 2026 floods, so ask for the current position before you buy anything. For Annapurna it is an ACAP permit plus TIMS where required; see the ACAP permit explainer and the Annapurna Circuit page. For the Everest region it is the two local permits described in Sagarmatha National Park entry and the Khumbu local permit and the Everest Base Camp page.

What to check before you go

The rules have moved several times since 2023, and the Board's pages, the Department of Immigration and the agencies do not always say the same thing on the same day. Before you pay anything, check the Board's TIMS page, ask your agency in writing what it will issue and when, and keep the answer. If you use our figures, remember that the fees in this article are as of October 2026. The permits category lists the rest of the series.

A short history of why TIMS keeps changing

TIMS started as a register to help find people in trouble, and over the years it became a gate for licensing as well as safety. The revision effective 31 March 2023 tied it to the guide rule, which is why trekkers and operators argue about it so much: a card that began as a safety register is now part of a rule about who may walk where. The Khumbu municipality's decision to issue its own trek card was a direct response, and operator reports since then describe a patchwork in which the same card is checked in one valley and ignored in the next.

That patchwork is the reason we keep dates on every statement. The position on 19 October 2026 may not be the position next season, and the Board's page gives no end date for the provision. If you are reading this later, check the Board's page first.

What to do if a checkpoint asks for a card you do not have

Stay calm, show your passport and permits, and call your agency. If you are with an agency, the agency should be able to confirm your eCard by number. If you are not, ask the checkpoint staff how to obtain one and where, and do not try to walk around the post. Our guide rule by region explains the wider rule, and where to buy trekking permits in Kathmandu and Pokhara lists the counters that issue the other documents.