NepalHRM
Attendance & time

Overtimeअतिरिक्त समय

Definition

Overtime is time worked beyond the standard eight-hour day or forty-eight-hour week. Under Nepal's Labour Act 2074 it is paid at one and a half times basic remuneration and is capped at four hours a day and twenty-four hours a week.

Also called: OT, overtime pay Nepal, atirikta samaya

Key facts

Rate
1.5 times basicBasic remuneration, not gross.
Daily cap
4 hoursBeyond the standard eight.
Weekly cap
24 hoursBeyond the standard forty-eight.
Approval
Should precede the workNot be granted afterwards.

The rate is on basic

One and a half times basic remuneration, not one and a half times gross. Companies that calculate on gross overpay, sometimes substantially, and companies that calculate on a nominal hourly rate invented for the purpose underpay. Both are avoidable by deriving the hourly figure from basic.

The caps are limits, not targets

Four hours a day and twenty-four hours a week are ceilings the Act sets. A team consistently at the ceiling is not a payroll question, it is a staffing question, and the overtime report is usually the first place that shows up.

Approve before, not after

Overtime approved after the fact is not a control. It is a reconciliation. Requiring approval before the extra hours are worked keeps the cost visible while it can still be changed, and it removes the awkward conversation where somebody has already done the work.

A system that turns every late punch into an automatic overtime request will bury the real ones. Set the rule so that overtime is raised deliberately.

Overtime on a NPR 30,000 basic salary

Assuming a standard 48-hour week and an hourly rate derived from basic.

Monthly basic
NPR 30,000
Derived hourly rate
Basic divided by the month's standard hours
Overtime rate
1.5 times that hourly figure

The derivation of the hourly rate should be written into the policy, because the standard hours in a Nepali month vary with the calendar.

Common questions

Overtime, answered

One and a half times basic remuneration under the Labour Act 2074. It is calculated on basic, not on gross salary.

Up to four hours in a day and twenty-four hours in a week, beyond the standard eight-hour day and forty-eight-hour week.

On basic remuneration. Calculating it on gross overpays, and using an invented hourly rate usually underpays.

Last reviewed 2026-07-29
  • Labour Act 2074, overtime rate and limits.

This page explains general practice in Nepal. It is not legal or tax advice, and statutory figures are revised from time to time. Check the current Act, rule or notice before acting on it.

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