Kathmandu, Dec 15 (AHN) The Nepal government on Monday allowed Nepali and Indian citizens to carry Indian currency notes denominated at INR 200 and INR 500 while travelling across the border.

The Cabinet decision is in line with a November 28 notification issued by the Reserve Bank of India, which allows any individual — other than citizens of Bangladesh and Pakistan — to carry Indian currency notes above INR 100 while travelling from India to Nepal and Bhutan, or from Nepal and Bhutan to India, up to a limit of INR 25,000.

"The Cabinet has decided to allow Nepali and Indian citizens to carry Indian currency (IC) notes of INR 200 and INR 500 while travelling to India and returning to Nepal," Minister for Communication and Information Technology and Government Spokesperson Jagadish Kharel told the press after the Cabinet meeting.

According to a senior official at Nepal Rastra Bank, the decision will ease travel for Nepalis going to India for medical treatment and other purposes. Indian tourists, including pilgrims visiting Nepal, who previously faced scrutiny and hassles for carrying Indian currency notes above INR 100 — illegal in Nepal until now — will also benefit from the decision, the official said.

After India announced the demonetisation of INR 500 and INR 1,000 notes in November 2016, Nepal also banned the use of those notes within its territory.

On November 8, 2016, the Indian government demonetised INR 500 and INR 1,000 notes “to unearth unaccounted wealth and fight corruption,” replacing them with INR 2,000 notes. According to Nepal’s central bank, unexchanged banknotes from that period worth over INR 50 million have continued to remain within Nepal’s banking system.

Residents of communities along the India–Nepal border have long been calling for the easing of restrictions on higher-denomination Indian currency notes to make daily life easier.

Before demonetisation, Nepal’s central bank had lifted the ban on the use of INR 500 and INR 1,000 notes in 2015 in line with the Reserve Bank of India’s relaxation. Prior to that, Nepal had imposed a ban on the use of INR 500 and INR 1,000 Indian banknotes since June 2000.