In the English New Year, the Department of Immigration began implementing the Foreign National Management Information System (FNMIS).

Many are interested in what kind of system this is and how it collects information on foreign nationals who have come to Nepal. Some have even questioned whether this system is designed to monitor foreign nationals. We have tried to explain this issue in five questions and answers.

Why did the Immigration Department launch the Foreign National Management Information System (FNMIS)?

Even though it was confirmed that foreigners entered Nepal with a specific purpose and then organized ‘involvement of foreigners in crime and other suspicious activities’, the government was criticized for not taking effective steps in regulation, monitoring and management since their entry into Nepal. To address this problem, the government has implemented the ‘Foreign National Management Information System (FNMIS)’ for the first time to regulate, monitor, manage and facilitate the activities of foreign nationals in Nepal. The department has stated that the details collected in the system will be used for national security, security of foreign nationals and criminal investigations.

How does this system work?

According to the Immigration Department, the government is also preparing to collaborate with telecom provider Nepal Telecom (Nepal Telecom) and private sector-funded Ncell to implement this system. Speaking to News Agency Nepal, Director General of the Immigration Department Ramchandra Tiwari said that discussions are underway with Nepal Telecom and Ncell to link the system and the results will be visible within the coming week. According to him, if someone takes a SIM card from the telecoms, its details will be included in the immigration system. It will be easy to know all the details from that.

Which other agencies besides Telecom are being linked to this system?

Immigration is also linking other agencies to this system. The department has said that about 1350 trekking agencies and about 100 star hotels in Kathmandu have been linked to this system. The department is also connecting both organizations of the Hotel Association, Nepal Tourism Board, Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), Confederation of Nepalese Industries and other private sector organizations to this system. Apart from that, the department is discussing to connect airline operators to this system. Immigration is connecting banks and financial institutions, foreign exchange centers, tourist guides, tourist police, and other organizations related to tourists to the immigration system.

Does the system monitor foreigners coming to Nepal?

The department has said that this system is being implemented for security reasons rather than for monitoring. During the launch of this system last Thursday, the director general of the department had said ,  & The department has been saying that this system has been implemented to ensure the safety of tourists, ease the flow of information, promote tourism and control crime.

What do hotel and tourism entrepreneurs say?

Khum Bahadur Subedi, former president of the Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN), said that the system that the department is about to launch is good. He said that if it is implemented, accurate data on how many tourists actually came to Nepal can be obtained. Tek Bahadur Mahat, CEO of the Hotel Association of Nepal, said that the department also consulted with them before launching this system, saying, "We have welcomed it as this system will work for the convenience of tourists. This system is good in terms of both the security of the country and the safety of tourists. The system of having to repeatedly submit the data filled in one place by tourists to government agencies should be ended."

In a conversation with Kantipur, some tourism entrepreneurs said that they were concerned about how the department protects the data and about the personal privacy of tourists. However, the department has said that every detail kept in the system will be kept safe. The system created by the Immigration Department was also audited by the National Cyber ​​Security Center and the Department of Information Technology to make it secure. Tiwari, Director General of the Immigration Department, said, "Once any person's personal information is in the immigration system, it should not be misused in any way other than for the safety of that citizen and the implementation of the law. The department is aware that it should be completely secure and under the complete control of the state."