Nepal Makes National ID Verification Mandatory for New Digital Wallets

Nepal Rastra Bank has made National ID verification mandatory when licensed payment service providers open digital wallets for Nepali citizens. Providers must check the applicant’s National ID details against the government’s electronic record under an amended payment systems directive.

The requirement appears in the fifteenth amendment to the Integrated Payment Systems Directive, 2082 BS. It moves National ID validation into wallet onboarding rather than allowing providers to rely only on other customer documents.

Existing wallet users must also be brought into the system. Providers are required to collect a declaration by October 17 indicating whether each customer has obtained a National ID, using their mobile applications or another suitable channel.

Customers who already possess the credential must update their wallet profiles with the National ID number by that date. Providers must send monthly reminders to users who have not yet obtained the card so they can update their information after enrollment.

The amendment preserves accommodations for Nepali citizens living abroad and introduces alternatives for people with disabilities or others who cannot independently manage the standard process. The available reporting does not indicate that every existing wallet will be immediately suspended on October 17 if an ID has not yet been issued.

The central bank’s measure connects digital payments to a national identity system that has been undergoing administrative and technical changes. Nepal recently linked citizenship and National ID records, allowing agencies to reconcile identifiers across systems.

The government has also been preparing to take greater operational control after cancelling a National ID support tender and planning in-house management. Those changes make the reliability and availability of the electronic record important for payment providers that must now verify customers against it.

For wallet operators, the rule introduces a government-source identity check at account opening and an account-remediation exercise for the existing customer base. It may reduce duplicate or falsely documented accounts, although the directive also creates work for providers serving users who are still waiting for their National ID.

Nepal’s digital wallet market includes services used for person-to-person transfers, merchant payments and bill settlement. Bringing those accounts under a standardized National ID requirement extends identity controls beyond banks into non-bank payment platforms.

The central bank did not publish technical specifications for the verification interface in the reports accompanying the amendment. Licensed providers will need to implement the check while maintaining the exception and notification processes set out in the revised directive.

Sources: Republica, Banking Sansar

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By Cass Kennedy