Background WHO defines Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) as any behaviour within an intimate relationship that causes physical, psychological or sexual harm to those in the relationship.

Objectives Objectives of the study were to assess the prevalence of physical, psychological and sexual violence by the intimate partners in women and its‘ impact on their health in Nepal.

Methods A population based cross-sectional survey was carried out in three districts of Kathmandu valley during May-July 2011. A pretested, and anonymous, structured questionnaire on IPV adopted from WHO/NORAQ was administered to a representative sample of 408 women of reproductive age from both rural and urban area by probability proportion to size technique. The collected data was analysed using descriptive statistics and χ² test.

Results Out of 408 women, 35.5% women have experienced psychological violence, 16.7% physical violence, and 3.6% sexual violence by their intimate partners. The prevalence of different form of violence was similar in women from both the urban and rural areas (p>0.05). Around 28.6% of the women complained of different physical health problems followed by reproductive (28.2%) and mental health problems (16.3%).

Significance This is one of the few scientific studies on IPV in Nepal. The study findings have provided data on IPV faced by Nepalese women of reproductive age.