Nepal Launches Call for Tax Stamp Security Printer

The government of Nepal’s Security Printing Center (SPC) in Kathmandu has issued an invitation for electronic bids for the secure printing, supply, and delivery of excise stamps on behalf of the Inland Revenue Department (IRD).

The self-adhesive stamps measure 15mm x 90mm and appear to be for domestically produced and imported beer products only, with a quantity of 433.2 million stamps stipulated in the tender (although it’s written as ’43,32,00,000 pcs’, so it’s not actually clear what the quantity should be).

What is clear, however, is that this is nowhere near the quantity stated in the last international tax stamp tender floated by the IRD, in 2020, which called for 8 billion stamps on tobacco, spirits, wine, beer and cider. This tender was, ultimately, halted in the Nepalese supreme court, following which the government decided to move production inhouse by importing its own digital security printing press.

One would therefore assume that this new SPC tender calling for external assistance to produce beer stamps constitutes the first stage in the start-up of operations on the digital press, and that printing volumes will gradually expand as SPC personnel become more proficient in using the press.

The SPC has in fact procured two HP Indigo 6K digital presses, together with Jura’s security printing software, and the winning bidder will be required to produce the tax stamps on these presses, on SPC’s premises. The presses are based on HP Indigo’s proprietary liquid electrophotography (LEP) digital colour printing technology and use the largest set of inks available to the security digital printing industry (including HP Indigo’s spot colour, silver, and invisible UV inks).

Specifically, the bidder is required to procure the security paper, ink, and other consumables for printing the stamps, as well as procure and maintain spare parts, print the stamps in line with Jura-certified designs and security features, oversee post-print processes such as die-cutting and packing, and provide on-the-job training and knowledge transfer to SPC throughout the entire production cycle.

Using its security printing software, Jura has developed a broad set of variable, connected security features with overt and covert properties, integrated into the stamp design. The stamps, including all the security features, can be printed altogether in a single pass – which is one of the key advantages of digital printing.

The features to be used for the Nepal stamp include:

• UV fluorescent serialised microtext.

• IQ-R code – a unique 2D barcode with encrypted covert layers of information with anti-copy properties, embedded within a standard barcode. The code must work with internal blockchain technology for connected security features and must be able to connect to a public or private blockchain network.

• Invisible variable information that is smartphone-readable.

• Variable modulated serial number knocked out of a metallic silver background.

• 2-colour guilloche and line width modulation.

• UV fluorescent linked coded information (LCI), in the form of prefabricated illustrations that are visually authenticated by comparing illustrations displayed on a Jura reader app to those on the tax stamp. The illustrations are selected from a library, printed in a particular order and then predicted by the Jura reader app. LCI can link to the IQ-R code or invisible variable information on the stamp.

In addition to these security features, the tender calls for visible and invisible fluorescent fibres incorporated into the tax stamp paper.

A pre-bid meeting is due to be held at Security Printing Center on 10 October 2022, after which bidders have until 20 October to submit their electronic bids via www.bolpatra.gov.np/egp. 

The tender document can be downloaded from www.bolpatra.gov.np/egp/searchOpportunity.