A consumer selected for a Rs 100,000 prize under Nepal's Taxpayer Incentive Gift Program for Bhadau 7 will not receive the money, after the Inland Revenue Department found the winning transaction was a Rs 1,000 donation to the Prime Minister's Natural Disaster Relief Fund rather than a qualifying purchase.
The programme is the government's big behavioural bet on formalising Nepal's economy: ask for a bill, get a free lottery ticket, and the state gets a paper trail it never had.
Context of the programme
The programme was announced by Finance Minister Dr Swarnim Wagle in the FY 2083/84 budget and has run since Shrawan 1, 2083 (17 July 2026), operated by the IRD under the Ministry of Finance. It rewards final consumers everyday shoppers for demanding proper invoices: personal purchases above Rs 100 inside Nepal become draw entries, with draws on the 1st and 16th of each Nepali month. Officials have framed it as a push to formalise the economy rather than collect tax through fear of penalties. The relief fund at the centre of this case is not new, but after the devastating Bhadau 10 Bhotekoshi flood in Rasuwa the government appealed for contributions, and many people gave by QR.
What has actually happened?
Coupon number 042 618 477 620 had won the Rs 100,000 prize for Bhadau 7. The department says that on that day the holder had paid Rs 1,000 into the Prime Minister's Natural Disaster Relief Fund by QR. The programme's operating procedure does not make a person who contributes to a relief fund in that way eligible for the gift, and for that reason the Bhadau 7 winner will not receive the prize money, IRD Information Technology Director Thaneshwar Paneru said.
Cancelled prize money is deposited into the Prime Minister's Natural Disaster Relief Fund under an existing provision.
