ACAP Permit 2026: NPR 3,000 Cost, Online Application & Where to Get It

The permit question is the first thing every Annapurna Base Camp trekker asks, and the answer is smaller than the internet makes it sound. In 2026 you need the ACAP conservation permit — NPR 3,000, about US$23 — plus a TIMS card at NPR 2,000 (≈ US$15) and a licensed guide. That is roughly NPR 5,000 / US$38 per person in total. Here is where to get each one, what the online portal can and cannot do, and what the rangers at Chhomrong actually ask to see.

ACAP & TIMS 2026: the short answer

• ACAP permit (the one that matters most): NPR 3,000 for foreign nationals (≈ US$23). SAARC nationals pay NPR 1,000; children under 10 are exempt.
• TIMS card: NPR 2,000 for individual foreign trekkers (≈ US$15), NPR 1,000 for group and SAARC trekkers.
• Both together: NPR 5,000, about US$38 per person — and that one pair of permits covers every trail inside the conservation area.
• Online? Partly. The NTNC has run an ACAP e-permit portal since October 2024, so the conservation permit can be pre-paid. TIMS is digital (e-TIMS) but still issued through a registered agency.
• Where in person: Nepal Tourism Board offices in Pokhara (Damside) or Kathmandu (Bhrikutimandap). Bring your passport, photos and cash — the counters do not take cards.

Trekking with us? We arrange both permits for you — they are included in our 9-day Annapurna Base Camp trek and Ghorepani Poon Hill trek, so you skip the queue at the NTB office entirely.

ACAP — Annapurna Conservation Area Permit

The Annapurna Conservation Area Permit (ACAP) is the single most important document for the ABC trek. For 2026 it costs NPR 3,000 per foreign trekker — roughly US$23 at about NPR 133 to the dollar — and NPR 1,000 for SAARC nationals. Children under 10 are exempt. It is required for every trekker entering the Annapurna region, regardless of route, and this one permit covers ABC, Poon Hill, Mardi Himal, the Annapurna Circuit and every other trail inside the conservation area.

ACAP is issued by the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC). You can obtain it at the Nepal Tourism Board counters in either Pokhara or Kathmandu, or have your agency arrange it. It is a single-entry permit, must match your passport name, and must be carried at all times — it is the document checkpoints scrutinise most closely on the Annapurna trails.

Can You Get the ACAP Permit Online in 2026?

Partly — and this is the question that brings most people to this page. Since October 2024 the NTNC has run an online e-permit portal for ACAP (and for Manaslu’s MCAP), so the conservation permit itself can be applied for and paid in advance rather than queued for at a counter. That is a real change from the old paper-only system.

What has not gone self-serve is TIMS. It is now e-TIMS — a digital record tied to your passport rather than a laminated card — but it is still issued through a registered, TAAN-affiliated agency, because the mandatory-guide rule means you are booking through an agency anyway. In practice that makes the portal most useful to agencies, and the simplest route for a trekker is still to let the agency file both. We do exactly that for every client, then hand you the permits before you leave Pokhara. The wider picture of what is digital and what is not is in our 2026 guide to every Nepal trekking permit.

TIMS Card — Trekkers’ Information Management System

The TIMS card is a rescue-and-tracking registration: if something goes wrong on the trail, rescue teams use TIMS records to identify and locate trekkers. For 2026 it costs NPR 2,000 for individual foreign trekkers (≈ US$15) and NPR 1,000 for trekkers booked through a group or agency.

TIMS is officially required on every Annapurna route and we register every client on it — it is your rescue safety net, and it is the reason a helicopter knows who to look for. Worth knowing: TIMS is not a nationwide constant. In the Khumbu it was replaced back in 2018 by the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu municipality permit, which is why an Everest Base Camp trek needs no TIMS at all. Annapurna still does.

Where to Get Permits in Pokhara

The easiest option for most trekkers flying into Pokhara is to collect permits here before heading to the trailhead.

• Location: Nepal Tourism Board office, Damside (Pardi), Pokhara — the TAAN office at Lakeside also processes agency permits
• Hours: Sunday–Friday, 9:00am–5:00pm (closed Saturdays and public holidays)
• What to bring: 2 passport-size photos, a photocopy of your passport (bio page + Nepal visa), cash in NPR or USD (no card payments)
• Time required: 20–40 minutes if you have all documents ready

Both ACAP and TIMS are arranged at the same office in Pokhara. Fill out the forms, hand over documents and fees, and your permits are issued on the spot.

Where to Get Permits in Kathmandu

If you are flying into Kathmandu and heading to Pokhara by bus or plane, you can collect permits in the capital instead.

• Location: Tourist Service Centre, Bhrikutimandap, Kathmandu (near Thamel)
• Hours: Sunday–Friday, 9:00am–5:00pm
• What to bring: Same as Pokhara — 2 photos, passport copy, cash

The process is identical. Many Kathmandu-based trekkers find this more convenient since they are already in the city before flying to Pokhara.

2026 Permit Cost Breakdown

Here is exactly what an Annapurna trekker pays in 2026, with the NPR rate and a US-dollar guide figure side by side. The fees are set in Nepali rupees, so treat the USD column as approximate — it is converted at roughly NPR 133 to the dollar.

For full permit cost details across all Annapurna routes, see our ACAP & TIMS permit guide, the Nepal permits hub, or the official Nepal Tourism Board TIMS page.

How Annapurna Compares to Nepal’s Other Regions

Here is the part that surprises people. At about US$38, Annapurna carries one of the cheapest permit bills in Nepal — roughly a fourteenth of what Upper Mustang costs. Permits are almost never the reason an Annapurna trek is expensive.

The two restricted regions are a different order of expense: Manaslu adds a Restricted Area Permit of US$100 for seven days plus US$15 a day beyond that in autumn, while Upper Mustang now bills US$50 per person per day after the old flat fee was scrapped in late 2025. The region-by-region figures are collected in our 2026 permit price list.

If You Book With an Agency

When you book your ABC trek with Travel Himalaya Nepal, we handle all permit paperwork on your behalf. You arrive in Pokhara, we sort it — no queuing, no confusion, no risk of missing documents. Because the 2026 rules require a licensed guide and agency-issued TIMS anyway, going through a registered agency is no longer just convenient — it is how the system now works.

All you need to bring are your original passport and two passport-size photos. We prepare every form, pay the fees on your behalf (included in your trek cost), and hand you both permits ready for the trail. If any question arises at a checkpoint, you have a local point of contact and a licensed guide walking with you. The permit line is a small part of the overall bill — our full ABC cost breakdown shows where the money actually goes.

Permit Checkpoints on the Trail

Your permits are checked at multiple points along the Annapurna Base Camp route. The main checkpoints are:

• Nayapul / Jhinu area — first checkpoint near the start of the trail
• Chhomrong — major checkpoint further up the valley
• Dovan / Bamboo — checkpoint before the upper sanctuary section

Rangers inspect your ACAP and record your details; your TIMS registration links to the same record. Trekkers caught without a valid ACAP face heavy on-the-spot fines — typically double the original fee — and in some cases are turned back entirely. There is no grace period and no option to pay later. Carry your permit at all times and keep it dry in a zip bag. Where each checkpoint falls on the walk is mapped out in our day-by-day ABC itinerary.

Ghandruk Village Fee

If your itinerary passes through Ghandruk village — which many ABC routes do on the return leg — you may be asked for a small village entry fee at the gate. This is a local municipal charge, not a government trekking permit, and it is collected for village upkeep rather than by the NTNC. It sits outside the NPR 5,000 above. Keep the receipt in case you are asked again further down the trail.

Do These Permits Cover Poon Hill and Other Annapurna Treks?

Yes — your ACAP permit is valid for all treks within the Annapurna Conservation Area for its single-entry duration. This includes:

One permit, one fee, all Annapurna trails. If you combine treks — for example doing Poon Hill on the way to ABC — your existing ACAP covers everything within its validity. You do not pay again. For how this compares elsewhere, the Everest Base Camp route needs two different permits and no TIMS, and Manaslu requires a costly restricted-area permit on top of two conservation permits.

Frequently Asked Questions

Still planning? Browse all Annapurna treks, read our ultimate ABC trek guide, or learn how your permit fees support local communities. Questions about checkpoints or timing? Contact our Pokhara team — we answer within a day.