KATHMANDU, May 14: Life insurance coverage in Nepal has reached an all-time high, with 44.64 percent of the population now insured, according to data from the Nepal Insurance Authority (NIA). Despite the progress, 55.36 percent of citizens still lack access to life insurance as of mid-April 2025.
At the end of Fiscal Year 2022/23, insurance coverage stood at 44.38 percent—the highest at the time. However, economic slowdown led to a decline in new policyholders, a rise in policy surrenders, and a temporary drop in insurance penetration, which fell to 42.70 percent by mid-August 2024.
Insurance access began to recover from mid-September, eventually surpassing the previous record by the mid-April 2025.
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When broken down by policy type, coverage varies significantly. Excluding fixed-term, short-term, and foreign employment life insurance policies, only 16.48 percent of the population is covered. Without foreign employment policies, coverage reaches 36.65 percent.
As of mid-April, there were 14.39 million active life insurance policies in the country. The rise in coverage is credited to the entry of microinsurance companies, expanded marketing strategies by insurers, and local-level outreach programs initiated by the NIA.
Life insurance business has also grown. In the first nine months of the current fiscal year, life insurance premiums rose by 15.32 percent compared to the same period last year. Premiums totaled Rs 127.37 billion, up from Rs 110.16 billion in the corresponding period of the previous year.
Currently, 14 large life insurance companies and three microinsurance companies are operational in Nepal.
