The Supreme Court has asked for a written answer, raising questions about the 'dollar' air fares started by the then Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation from Mountain Flight in 2027. 9 airlines operating domestic flights have implemented two types of fares for domestic and foreign citizens. Foreigners have to pay a higher price of 100 to 240 percent compared to the air fare charged to Nepali citizens by the airline companies.

The fare paid by foreigners is called 'Dollar Fare'. Any foreigner should pay Nepali Rupees equivalent to the prescribed dollar or equivalent of the dollar on the domestic flight. Tapendra Rawal, a tourist businessman from Kailali, filed a petition in the Supreme Court on January 21 stating that the dollar fare was implemented without a legal basis and that it has hindered the tourist area and market of Mofsal, which has a lot of potential.

On January 22, while hearing this writ application, the Supreme Court has issued a show cause order in the name of the opponents including the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Judge Balkrishna Dhakal's bench has asked the Nepal Government, Ministry of Tourism and other opponents to give written answers through the Attorney General's office.

Tourism businessman Rawal has stated that there are many tourist spots in Mofsal of Nepal including Sudupashchim, but foreign tourists are not able to reach them due to the high cost of air fares. "According to the law, consumers can be both citizens and non-citizens, and this is a punishable crime as airline companies have unfairly exploited them," he said in the writ. In the

writ, businessman Rawal has claimed that the air fare regulation guidelines made using the authority of the Nepal Civil Aviation Authority Act have determined the air fares for domestic flights within the minimum and maximum limits of the air fares, saying that there is no 'dollar fair' and the airline companies have also violated this guideline .

"While Nepali citizens pay a minimum of 6500 rupees for the one-way Kathmandu-Dhangadhi air fare, foreigners have to buy tickets for 23 thousand 550 rupees, and since the Nepalese government only gets 500 rupees for taxes due to the difference in the air fare of domestic foreigners, this fare should be uniform," he demanded. In the writ, he has demanded judicial intervention as there is no scientific basis for the two types of air fares. He reminded that the National Park and Wildlife Regulations have provided a legal basis for different fees to be paid by Nepalese and foreign citizens, but there is no law on air fares.

Rawal also submitted an application to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation in 079 Chaitra to remove the higher fares charged to foreigners. But after the ministry did not give any answer for a year and a half, he said that he has filed a complaint with the National Information Commission. "I went to the court for justice because no one including the government minister, Sarkobarwal body, etc. gave an answer," said Rawal, "airfare is the main obstacle for foreign tourists coming to Nepal not to go to Mofasal." Spokesperson Ramakrishna Lamichhane said that the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation discussed this issue recently. Lamichhane, who is also the joint secretary, said that the arrangement to collect dollar fares from foreigners was made by the board of directors of the then Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation. "We have already prepared a written answer to the matter asked by the Supreme Court." According to Maheshwar Bhakta Shrestha, former director of the

corporation, at the end of the 2020s, the Act of the then Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation stipulated that the people of remote areas should be served at accessible air fare rates. But for the first time, the decision to apply dollar fares to foreigners on mountain flights was made by the Corporation and approved by the then Aviation Department, he said. Private airlines that have been established through open skies policy after 046 have also adopted double fares for domestic and foreign passengers.  

After the foreign embassies in Nepal complained to the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Office, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Tourism and other stakeholders every time, a 7-member study task force was formed under the leadership of the then Deputy Director General of the Authority, Narendra Bahadur Thapa, in 2077. The task force was given the task of studying and analyzing the air fares of the domestic segment and recommending a timely review, maintaining the same fares for domestic air flights between foreign and domestic air passengers, studying the options and determining the baggage rates for domestic air flights between foreign and domestic air passengers and recommending the air fares of domestic flights.

But due to the covid epidemic that started soon after the formation of the working group, the regular meetings of that working group were affected. The working group submitted the report to the government through online meetings. But the airline operator objected to it. The Airline Operators Association, Nepal did not send its representative to the working group expressing disagreement on determining the same air fare rates between domestic and foreign passengers.

task force for foreign passengers originating from the airport easy route mountain flight (mountain flight) and  In case of flights in Bharatpur, Pokhara, Jomsom and Lukla (including Lukla-Ramechhap) sectors only, the airlines will be allowed to  It was recommended that air fares can be fixed in foreign currency or in Nepalese currency which is maintained at an equivalent exchange rate . It was suggested that the current fares should be reviewed by removing dollar fares from other sectors.  This report was not made public because the airline operators did not agree. The recommendation was not implemented.