While imports of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles nosedived in the past year, the imports of electric vehicles (two-wheeler, three-wheeler, and four-wheeler) have increased in an unprecedented manner in the current fiscal year. With the government imposing restrictions on the imports of e and motorcycles above 150 cc for eight months, the imports of electric vehicles surged by a whopping 96.98 percent in the first five months of FY 2022/23. The latest foreign trade statistics of the Department of Customs show there has been a remarkable increase in imports of electric four-wheelers (cars, SUVs, micro-buses and buses) and two-wheelers in the review period. The government policy of excise duty waiver and low customs duties on the imports of EVs along with auto loans up to 80 percent offered by banks and financial institutions have been instrumental in the expansion of the EV market in Nepal in recent years.

The department's data show the import of electric cars and SUVs has increased by 48.19 percent while the imports of electric two-wheelers jumped 440.12 percent in the review period. The growth in the cars and SUVs segment has been driven by the surge of electric four-wheelers up to 100kW.

The change in the tax arrangements on electric vehicles by the government in the current fiscal year's budget has helped in the market boom of 100kW EVs. Finance Minister Janardan Sharma in the budget for FY2022/23 levied excise duty on top of the existing customs duty on electric vehicles above 100 kW capacity. The government has imposed a 30 percent excise duty on vehicles with 100-200 kW motors. Similarly, a 45 percent excise duty has been imposed on the imports of vehicles with electric motors of 201-300 kW capacity and a 60 percent excise duty on vehicles with more than 300 KW motor capacity. The changes in tax structure have made EVs above 100 kW costlier in the market. Official statistics show the imports of EVs up to 100 kW have gone up by 328.57 percent in the first five months while imports of EVs above 100 kW have declined by 95 percent. The biggest growth has been seen in the motorcycle/scooter segment. The imports of electric motorcycles/scooters have increased by a whopping 440 percent in the current fiscal year. Nepal has imported 4483 units of electric motorcycles/scooters in the first five months of the current fiscal compared to 830 units during the same period of the last fiscal. The electric three-wheelers and micro-bus segments also grew by 22 percent and 85.71 percent, respectively. Nepal has imported 3837 electric three-wheelers and 78 electric micro-buses in the first five months of the current fiscal year. Import of Electric two-wheeler, three-wheeler, and four-wheeler  

	FY 2021/22	FY 2022/23
Car, Jeep, Van	913	1353
Motorcycle & Scooter	830	4483
Three-wheeler	3134	3827
Hybrid	46	12
Bus		37
Microbuses	42	78
Others	6	2
	4971	9792

  Source: Department of Customs