The price of climbing Mount Everest will soon rise for the first time in nearly a decade as Nepal announces a significant increase in permit fees.

Starting in September, those hoping to summit the world’s highest peak during peak season will have to pay $15,000 (£12,180), a 36% rise from the long-standing fee of $11,000, officials said on Wednesday.

For those who want to climb outside the peak months of April to May, the fee will also increase by the same percentage – meaning the fee will be $7,500 between September and November and $7,500 between December and February is $3,750.

Income from license fees is Nepal’s main source of income, with mountaineering and trekking contributing more than 4% to the country’s economy.

Mountaineering experts often criticize the Nepalese government for allowing too many climbers to climb Mount Everest, but the government issues about 300 climbing permits each year.

It’s unclear whether price increases that have been discussed since last year will slow demand.

“Royalty (license fees) has not been reviewed for a long time,” Tourism Minister Narayan Prasad Regmi told Reuters. “We have updated it now.”

Regmi did not specify how the additional revenue would be used.

In April 2024, Nepal’s Supreme Court ordered the government to limit the number of climbing permits issued for Everest and other peaks, saying the mountain’s capacity “must be respected.”

However, the preliminary order did not set a maximum number.

The Nepalese army in 2019 began an annual cleanup of Everest, a mountain often described as the world’s highest garbage dump, amid concerns about overcrowding and climbers queuing to reach the summit in dangerous conditions.

During that time, at least five clean-ups collected 119 tons of garbage, 14 bodies and some skeletons, according to the military, but an estimated 200 bodies remain on the mountain.

Eight of the world’s 14 highest mountains are located in Nepal, including Mount Everest.