Charities and NGOs in Nepal
Nepal has a dense civil-society sector with thousands of NGOs and INGOs operating across social development, humanitarian relief, healthcare, education, women's empowerment, child protection, disability inclusion, environmental protection, and post-earthquake reconstruction. Nepalese NGOs are unusually rooted in local communities and play a major role in remote mountain districts where state services are limited. Whether you are searching for a comprehensive list of NGOs in Nepal, an SWC affiliated organization directory, an INGO Nepal lookup, or a single verified Nepalese nonprofit to donate to, GiveRadar consolidates official registration data, financial information, news coverage, and an independent integrity score for every Nepalese NGO. Read about how GiveRadar works before you give.
How charities and NGOs are registered in Nepal
Nepalese NGOs register at the District Administration Office (DAO) of the relevant district under the Associations Registration Act 2034. After local registration, NGOs intending to operate in social development, humanitarian assistance, education, health, women and children, disability, environment, or community development must affiliate with the Social Welfare Council (SWC) under the Social Welfare Act. INGOs operating in Nepal must register directly with the SWC under a General Agreement and a project-by-project Project Agreement, contributing a minimum USD 200,000 annually from outside Nepal and partnering with a local NGO. Both NGO and INGO registrations require annual renewal. Tax exemption status is granted by the Inland Revenue Department on application.
Major causes and well-known Nepalese NGOs
The Nepalese nonprofit sector covers a wide spectrum of cause areas:
- Health and rural healthcare: Nepal Youth Foundation, Possible (Nyaya Health), Hope Worldwide Nepal, and Phase Worldwide partners.
- Education and child protection: Room to Read Nepal, Maiti Nepal (anti-trafficking), Save the Children Nepal, and SOS Children's Villages Nepal.
- Earthquake recovery and disaster preparedness: Habitat for Humanity Nepal, Lutheran World Federation Nepal, and DEPROSC.
- Women's empowerment: Maiti Nepal, ASMITA Women's Publishing, and FWLD (Forum for Women, Law and Development).
- Conservation and environment: National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC), WWF Nepal, and Bird Conservation Nepal.
- Disability and inclusion: Karuna Foundation Nepal and Nepal Disabled Human Rights Centre.
- Mountain communities: Himalayan Trust, Mountain Trust Nepal, and trekking-region education funds.
Compare two organizations side by side with our charity comparison tool, or browse best health charities in Nepal and best education charities in Nepal to narrow by cause.
How to evaluate a Nepalese NGO before donating
Nepal has a large but variable NGO sector, so donor diligence is essential. Things to check before giving to any Nepalese NGO:
- DAO registration: every legitimate Nepalese NGO has a District Administration Office registration certificate.
- SWC affiliation: required for NGOs operating in social-development sectors and a basic credibility signal.
- Inland Revenue Department tax exemption: required for legitimate charitable status.
- Annual renewals: SWC-affiliated NGOs must renew their registration every year; check the renewal status.
- International partnerships: partners of UN agencies, USAID, FCDO, or major Western foundations have usually passed vendor due-diligence checks.
- Sanctions and watchlists: use our free charity checker tool to cross-reference every Nepalese NGO against OFAC, EU, and UN watchlists automatically.
Each Nepalese NGO profile on GiveRadar combines DAO registration, SWC affiliation, financials, governance, and third-party signals into a single 0-100 integrity score. Read our integrity score methodology for the full weighting.
Nepal NGO explorer: browse, filter, compare
This page works as a Nepal NGO explorer: every registered Nepalese NGO and INGO we hold data on, ranked and filterable by district, cause area, SWC affiliation, financial transparency, presence of a website, and size. Use the filters on the left to narrow by category (health, education, women and children, disaster recovery, environment, disability, religion, advocacy, and more), and the search bar to find a specific organization by name. The directory updates daily as we ingest new SWC and DAO data and enrich existing records with contact details, financials, programs, and news coverage. To compare Nepalese giving against other markets, browse all countries or jump straight to education charities globally.
Donating to charities in Nepal
Most Nepalese NGOs accept eSewa, IME Pay, and bank-transfer donations directly through their websites; international donors typically give through US 501(c)(3) intermediaries (such as the dZi Foundation or Asia Foundation), UK fiscal sponsors, or platforms like GlobalGiving. Nepali tax-resident donors can claim limited deductions for donations to approved organizations. GiveRadar links to each NGO's official donation channel where available and flags fundraising pages that look unverified. For a structured donor walkthrough, read our donor due-diligence guide.