Everest permit revenue hits a record after the climbing fee rose to $15,000

Nepal's Department of Tourism issued 464 fee-paying permits for Mount Everest in the spring 2026 season and collected roughly Rs1.01 billion in royalties, which the department's director general described as a historic high.

Permit numbers themselves were broadly flat. The revenue jump comes from the fee increase that took effect on 1 September 2025, raising the royalty for a foreign climber on the standard route from $11,000 to $15,000, a rise of 36 percent. It was the first change since January 2015, when Nepal moved from group-based pricing to a flat per-climber fee.

Fees for Nepali climbers were also raised, doubling from Rs75,000 to Rs150,000 for the spring season.

The government has linked the increase to waste management on the mountain and social security provision for high-altitude workers, both long-running pressure points on Everest.

This affects expedition climbers rather than trekkers. If you are walking to Everest Base Camp rather than climbing above it, the royalty does not apply to you. You need a Sagarmatha National Park entry permit and a Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality permit, which cost a small fraction of these figures.