What it costs to buy and sell shares on NEPSE
Broker commission, the SEBON fee and the DP charge explained with real numbers, plus how far a price has to rise before a trade breaks even.
4 min read
Every NEPSE trade carries three charges on top of the share amount: broker commission, the SEBON fee and a DP charge. They're small on a single bill, but they decide how much a price has to rise before you make any money, and they hit small trades much harder than large ones.
All figures below are the rates in force in November 2026.
The three charges
Broker commission is a percentage of the trade amount. The rate depends on the size of the trade, and the slab is picked by the whole amount, then applied to the whole amount (it isn't split across slabs like income tax).
| Trade amount (Rs) | Commission |
|---|---|
| Up to 50,000 | 0.36% |
| 50,000 to 5 lakh | 0.33% |
| 5 lakh to 20 lakh | 0.31% |
| 20 lakh to 1 crore | 0.27% |
| Above 1 crore | 0.24% |
The minimum commission on any trade is Rs 10. These rates have applied since 14 May 2024.
SEBON fee is 0.015% of the trade amount, charged on every buy and every sale. It goes to the Securities Board of Nepal and hasn't changed since 2007.
DP charge is a flat Rs 25 per company per settlement, on both buys and sells. It pays the depository (CDSC) and your DP for moving the shares in or out of your demat account. Because it's flat, it matters most on small trades.
There's no VAT or stamp duty on share trades.
What a typical bill looks like
Buying 200 shares at Rs 500 (Rs 1,00,000):
| Line | Rs |
|---|---|
| Share amount | 1,00,000.00 |
| Broker commission (0.33%) | 330.00 |
| SEBON fee (0.015%) | 15.00 |
| DP charge | 25.00 |
| Total you pay | 1,00,370.00 |
Your real cost per share is Rs 501.85, not Rs 500.
Selling the same 200 shares at Rs 520 (Rs 1,04,000):
| Line | Rs |
|---|---|
| Share amount | 1,04,000.00 |
| Broker commission (0.33%) | −343.20 |
| SEBON fee (0.015%) | −15.60 |
| DP charge | −25.00 |
| Before tax | 1,03,616.20 |
The gain is Rs 1,03,616.20 − Rs 1,00,370.00 = Rs 3,246.20. Capital gains tax is then taken from that gain (5% if you held the shares for 365 days or less, 3.75% if longer), so you'd receive Rs 1,03,453.89 after a short-term sale. The price rose 4%, and you kept about 3.07% of your money as profit.
The break-even price
Fees on both sides mean a share has to rise before you're even back to zero. For the trade above, the lowest selling price that covers the Rs 1,00,370 cost is Rs 503.72, a rise of about 0.74%. Below that, you lose money even though the price went up.
A round trip of around Rs 1 lakh costs roughly 0.74% in fees before any tax. That's the minimum move you need just to stand still.
Why small trades cost more
The flat Rs 25 DP charge on each side makes small trades expensive in percentage terms:
| Trade size | Fees on the buy | As a share of the trade |
|---|---|---|
| Rs 10,000 | Rs 62.50 | 0.63% |
| Rs 50,000 | Rs 212.50 | 0.43% |
| Rs 1,00,000 | Rs 370.00 | 0.37% |
| Rs 10,00,000 | Rs 3,275.00 | 0.33% |
On a Rs 10,000 trade, you pay more than Rs 120 in fees for the round trip, so the price has to rise well over 1% before you break even. Buying the same company in several small lots on different days also means paying the DP charge on each settlement.
Practical takeaways
- Know your break-even before you buy. Add roughly 0.75% to your buy price (more for small trades) to see where you start making money.
- Avoid many tiny trades. The flat DP charge eats small positions.
- Your MeroShare cost includes fees. The average cost (WACC) that capital gains tax is worked out from includes commission, SEBON fee and DP charge, not just the share price.
The NepseLytics share calculator works out the full bill, the tax and the break-even price for any trade, using the rates in force on the day you pick.
This article is general information about trading costs, not investment advice.
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