tolapayNotes on billing, VAT and getting paid in Nepal.
Guides for founders and engineers building software businesses here — researched and written while building Tola Pay.
How to accept online payments in Nepal (2026): wallets, QR, banks and cards
What a software business in Nepal can actually collect through today — eSewa, Khalti, Fonepay QR, connectIPS and cards — with the numbers behind each rail and how to wire them into one checkout.
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Payments · 26 Oct 2026Khalti vs eSewa for SaaS billing: integration, coverage and verification
A practical comparison for engineering teams: KPG-2 initiate/lookup vs ePay v2 form + HMAC, which banks you reach, and how each payment must be verified before you mark anything paid.
7 min read
Payments · 24 Oct 2026Recurring payments in Nepal when almost nobody has a card on file
Why card auto-debit barely exists for Nepali customers, and the three patterns that actually collect subscriptions here: invoice links with reminders, prepaid wallets, and the emerging connectIPS e-mandate.
7 min read
Invoicing · 21 Oct 2026What a VAT invoice in Nepal must contain (and when e-billing becomes mandatory)
Rule 17 fields, Bikram Sambat numbering, the IRD e-billing and CBMS thresholds, and how to get all of it from your billing system instead of a template.
6 min read
Nepal business · 18 Oct 2026Selling software into Nepal from abroad: the 13% VAT and 2% Digital Service Tax
The two regimes the Inland Revenue Department applies to non-resident digital services, the NPR 3 million threshold, and why billing from a Nepali entity changes the picture.
6 min read
Pricing · 15 Oct 2026Pricing SaaS in Nepali rupees: inclusive VAT, seats, usage and the numbers that convert
A working guide to NPR price points, when to show VAT-inclusive prices, how to mix seats with usage, and what the local market will actually pay for.
7 min read
Usage billing · 11 Oct 2026How usage-based billing works (and when it beats a flat subscription)
Meters, events, tiers and allowances explained with a Nepali SaaS example — plus the one API call that makes it safe to retry.
6 min read
Usage billing · 8 Oct 2026Prepaid wallets and spend limits: the billing model AI products in Nepal actually need
Why credits beat invoices for token- and minute-metered products, how low-balance alerts and hard limits protect both sides, and how to run it on local rails.
5 min read
Engineering · 5 Oct 2026Idempotent usage events with transaction_id
A short engineering note on sending usage from queues and retries without ever double-billing a customer.
4 min read
Engineering · 2 Oct 2026Your app got invoice.paid. Now what? Building reliable webhook handlers
Verify the signature, make the handler idempotent, grant access from the event not the redirect — the four habits that make billing webhooks boring.
5 min read
Payments · 29 Sept 2026Why every Tola Pay checkout shows a QR code
Nepal pays by phone. A QR that opens the checkout on a handset — where Khalti, eSewa and banking apps live — removes the biggest friction in a desktop purchase.
4 min read
Invoicing · 25 Sept 2026Charging 13% VAT on SaaS in Nepal: what the invoice has to show
Tax-inclusive vs. exclusive pricing, what an invoice must carry, and how Tola Pay prints the VAT split, PAN and bank details automatically.
5 min read