KATHMANDU: The Nepal Rastra Bank has amended its unified directives, ordering commercial and financial institutions to significantly upgrade their accessibility standards and labor practices.

Under the new regulations, banks must collaborate to establish at least one disability-friendly branch in every local government unit, alongside providing at least one accessible ATM equipped with braille signage, control buttons, and audio support at all major ATM lounges.

Furthermore, financial institutions are now required to design their websites and mobile apps to accommodate visually impaired users, issue debit and credit cards with tactile features, and grant access to digital banking services based on a customer’s self-declaration rather than a bank assessment.

In addition to these accessibility mandates, the central bank has introduced strict labor protections, prohibiting institutions from forcing employees to work outside of standard office hours and requiring mandatory overtime pay for any extra hours worked according to prevailing laws.