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Bibek Bhandari

Nepal is stepping up scrutiny of illegal cross-border matchmaking after authorities uncovered cases in which brokers and online intermediaries were marketing Nepali women as prospective brides for Chinese nationals, prompting increased enforcement and official warnings.
The Chinese Embassy in Nepal issued a New Year’s travel advisory cautioning its citizens against what it described as “bride buying” in the country, urging them not to trust matchmaking agencies and brokers blindly and stressing that deceptive or profit-driven cross-border matchmaking is illegal under Chinese law.
“Fully understand the legal, cultural, property division and child custody risks involved in cross-border marriages,” the notice said. “Do not easily believe cross-border matchmaking … stay away from illegal marriage brokers.”
The warning, posted on Friday, follows a series of recent cases in Nepal that have drawn attention to suspected illegal matchmaking activity involving Chinese nationals, as well as a broader shift by online brokers towards South Asia.


China’s demand for overseas brides is often linked by researchers to its skewed sex ratio, which official figures put at about 104 men for every 100 women. The imbalance, shaped over decades by birth control policies and a cultural preference for sons, has left millions of men struggling to find partners. Some turn to paid matchmaking services that claim to help facilitate marriages abroad.
Activists and authorities say such services often exploit young women in poorer countries, promoting marriage as a pathway out of poverty while obscuring legal, financial and personal risks.
Women and girls from Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam have previously been trafficked and sold as wives in China. Analysts say online brokers are now expanding into South Asia, including Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal, citing the region’s fast-growing population and the increasing presence of Chinese-funded infrastructure projects and businesses.
In May, the Chinese embassy in Bangladesh issued a similar advisory, warning citizens against the idea of “buying a foreign wife” and urging them to avoid online marriage scams.
Chinese media reported that some matchmaking agencies were charging between 5,000 yuan (US$713) and 188,000 yuan (US$26,830), marketing the process as “simple and easy”.
Last month, Nepal’s immigration authorities found several young Nepali women living in rented apartments with Chinese nationals in the capital, Kathmandu. The Chinese men admitted to filming the women and sending the videos to friends in China and sharing them on social media, though they did not explicitly state the purpose of the recordings.
Authorities deported four Chinese nationals for visa violations, saying there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges over allegations that the women were being coerced into marriages in China.
In a separate case in 2019, four Chinese nationals and six Nepalis were arrested for running a bride-trafficking racket. Two years ago, a Nepali woman married to a Chinese man was charged with human trafficking for allegedly luring several girls into similar marriages.

“In recent years, several Chinese citizens who came to Nepal to find wives through illegal matchmaking agencies have been arrested on suspicion of human trafficking, child marriage, rape and other crimes,” the Chinese embassy in Nepal said in its statement.
The embassy also cautioned citizens not to trust marriage promotions on short-video platforms, saying illegal marriage brokers were active on major Chinese social media services.
Across WeChat, Weibo and RedNote, numerous accounts promote marriages with Nepali women, using live-streams to present young women under the guise of “cultural shows”. Other accounts show the daily lives of Nepali brides in China, projecting an image of happy married life, though some women have reported physical and mental abuse after relocating.
On Friday, the same day the embassy issued its warning, Nepal’s immigration department detained another Chinese man from Kathmandu’s Dhapasi area for his alleged involvement in illegal matchmaking, though officials said details of the suspected activity were still limited.
“Our preliminary investigation shows that the Chinese man was involved in suspicious activities and could be part of a larger network that purportedly sought Nepali girls to marry Chinese men,” said Teekaram Dhakal, director of Nepal’s immigration department. “We will release more information after the investigation is complete.”
Dhakal said the Chinese national, who is married to a Nepali woman, had lived in Nepal for three years. While he currently holds a spousal visa, he had previously entered the country on tourist and business visas.
Nepal is introducing a tracking system for foreigners starting Jan 1, under which all visitors will be required to provide detailed accommodation information, helping authorities to curb the growing misuse of visas and criminal activities. Nepal expelled 497 foreigners for criminal offences or violating visa conditions in 2024.


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Officials say online brokers are promoting Nepali women to Chinese men, prompting detentions and official warnings


Officials say online brokers are promoting Nepali women to Chinese men, prompting detentions and official warnings.


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Nepal probes illegal matchmaking as China cautions citizens over ‘bride buying’

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Officials say online brokers are promoting Nepali women to Chinese men, prompting detentions and official warnings

Officials say online brokers are promoting Nepali women to Chinese men, prompting detentions and official warnings