Bikram Sambat (BS) - Nepal's Official Calendar

What is Bikram Sambat?

Bikram Sambat (also spelled Vikram Samvat or Vikram Sambat; abbreviated BS or B.S.; Nepali: बिक्रम सम्बत) is the official civil calendar of the Government of Nepal. It is used for all administrative, legal, financial, and educational purposes in Nepal. Every government form, court document, property deed (lalpurja), Nepal Rastra Bank statement, income tax filing, school and university certificate, and Nepali newspaper uses Bikram Sambat dates.

Bikram Sambat is a lunisolar calendar: its month lengths are defined by a fixed lookup table that accounts for solar and lunar cycles. The months are solar (their start and end dates are fixed relative to the sun), but tithi (lunar days) are overlaid on the calendar for religious and cultural observances.

The calendar is named after the legendary Indian emperor Vikramaditya of Ujjain. Its epoch is traditionally placed at 57 BCE, making BS years approximately 56–57 years ahead of the Common Era (CE/AD). As of 2026 AD, the current Bikram Sambat year is 2083.

Current Bikram Sambat Year

The current Bikram Sambat year is BS 2083, which began on Baishakh 1, 2083 - April 14, 2026 AD (Nepal's national New Year holiday, Nava Barsha). BS 2083 ends on the last day of Chaitra 2083, April 13, 2027 AD. The next year, BS 2084, begins on April 14, 2027 AD.

The Bikram Sambat New Year (Nava Barsha, नव वर्ष) is a national public holiday in Nepal. It falls on Baishakh 1 of each year, which corresponds to mid-April in the Gregorian calendar (usually April 13 or April 14).

BS vs AD Year Comparison

To convert from Bikram Sambat to Gregorian (AD), subtract approximately 56 or 57 years depending on the month. The exact offset is 56 years until roughly mid-April, then 57 years from mid-April onward within the same Gregorian year.

The 12 Months of Bikram Sambat

Bikram Sambat has 12 months. Each month has 29 to 32 days; the exact day count for each month changes each year and is defined by a fixed calendar lookup table - not a repeating formula. The first month, Baishakh, begins in mid-April and marks the Nepali New Year.

Month lengths range from 29 to 32 days. Exact day counts per month vary each year and are defined by a fixed calendar lookup table maintained by the Government of Nepal.

How BS to AD Conversion Works

Unlike the Gregorian calendar where leap years follow a predictable rule, Bikram Sambat month lengths are defined by a fixed lookup table. No arithmetic formula can reliably convert between BS and AD - you need the actual table. The table covers BS 1901 to 2199 and specifies the exact number of days in each month for every year.

The reason for this: BS is a solar calendar with month boundaries fixed by the sun's position in the zodiac (the solar longitude of each rashi). The exact solar crossing date varies by a day or two each year depending on the Earth's orbital position, making it impossible to express month lengths as a simple repeating cycle.

For any practical date conversion, use a library or tool that embeds the official table. The NepDate .NET library (which powers NepDate Widget) uses a zero-allocation implementation with the full BS 1901–2199 lookup table. BS↔AD conversion takes approximately 4–14 nanoseconds per call.

Official Use of Bikram Sambat in Nepal

Bikram Sambat is mandatory for all official documents in Nepal. Any Nepali citizen working with government paperwork, banking, or legal matters will encounter BS dates daily. Common uses:

• Land records (lalpurja, नापी) - all property deeds and cadastral records
• Nepal Rastra Bank - all official bank statements, loan documents, and NRB communications
• Income tax (IRDETO) - all tax filings, assessment years, and due dates are in BS
• Courts - all court filings, summons, orders, and judgments
• Education - school leaving certificates, SLC/SEE results, university transcripts
• Employment - all employment contracts, salary slips, and HR records in Nepal
• Nepal Government Gazette (Nepal Rajapatra) - all official notifications
• Nepal Police and government ID - all official ID dates

Anyone living between Nepal and another country - for immigration paperwork, foreign employment, or bank verification - routinely needs to convert BS dates on their documents to AD and vice versa. NepDate Widget solves this daily conversion need without internet, without an account, and without switching browser tabs.

Tithi - The Lunar Day in the Nepali Calendar

Alongside the solar date, the Nepali calendar shows tithi (तिथि) - the lunar day from the Hindu calendar. A tithi is one of 30 divisions of the lunar month and determines the timing of religious observances, festivals, and auspicious events. Each solar calendar cell in the Nepali Patro shows the tithi for that day.

Because lunar days (tithi) are shorter than solar days (approximately 19–26 hours each), a single solar day can span parts of two different tithi, or a tithi can be skipped entirely in a given solar day. This is why some festivals (like Dashain's main day, Vijaya Dashami) shift by a day or two relative to the Gregorian calendar each year.

NepDate Widget's calendar shows tithi for each day in BS years 2001–2089. The NepDate .NET library provides tithi data as a string property on each NepaliDate instance.

Bikram Sambat vs Vikram Samvat (India)

Bikram Sambat and India's Vikram Samvat share the same ancient origin and the same approximate year count (both are around year 2083 as of 2026 AD). However, they are not the same calendar system in practice:

• Nepal's Bikram Sambat is the official state calendar, maintained and published by the Government of Nepal. Its month boundaries are fixed by solar position and defined by a government-issued lookup table.
• India's Vikram Samvat is used primarily for religious observances in states like Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh. India's official national calendar is the Saka calendar.
• Month lengths can differ between the two systems for the same year. The Nepali government table is the authoritative source for Nepal-specific BS dates.
• Nepal counts years from the Kartik (October/November) month in some regional traditions (Nepal Sambat), but the standard Bikram Sambat used in government documents starts with Baishakh (mid-April).

Frequently Asked Questions about Bikram Sambat

What year is it in the Nepali calendar right now?

As of May 2026 AD, the current Nepali (Bikram Sambat) year is 2083. BS 2083 started on April 14, 2026 and ends April 13, 2027.

How many months does Bikram Sambat have?

12 months: Baishakh, Jestha, Ashadh, Shrawan, Bhadra, Ashwin, Kartik, Mangsir, Poush, Magh, Falgun, Chaitra. Each has 29–32 days. There is no leap month; extra days are distributed among months according to the lookup table.

What is the first month of the Nepali calendar?

Baishakh (बैशाख) is the first month, beginning in mid-April. Baishakh 1 is Nepal's New Year Day (Nava Barsha).

What is 2026 in the Nepali calendar?

Most of 2026 AD falls within Bikram Sambat year 2082 (January–April 13) and 2083 (April 14 onward). As of May 2026, it is BS 2083.

Can I convert any BS date to AD without the internet?

Yes. NepDate Widget is a free offline Windows app that converts any BS date (1970–2100) to AD instantly. The conversion table is built in - no internet required. Download it here.