Police are working to piece together the last movements of an international student whose body washed up on Mount Maunganui beach.

Pawan Kumar Khadka, 22, from Nepal, had been living in Tauranga for 18 months before his death. Photo: supplied.

A beach walker discovered Pawan Kumar Khadka, 22, floating in the surf south-east of Moturiki Island at 6.30am Monday.

The Nepalese student, originally from Kathmandu, had been living in New Zealand for the past 18 months.

A grooming crew found a pile of his clothes on the shore in the early hours.

But Senior Sergeant Glenn Saunders, of Tauranga police, said no one saw Khadka enter the water.

"He went into the water in the early hours, nobody actually saw him go in.

"We are doing our best to get an idea of the what and how, and will be speaking to a number of close friends to establish who the last person to see him was."

There was a sighting of Khadka on a nearby street in Mt Maunganui about 1.30am, Saunders said.

His car was later found parked on nearby Marine Parade.

"We haven't got an idea of what his intentions were and it is part of what we are trying to determine, whether he went in for a swim, or whether he could swim."

A post-mortem was scheduled to take place in Hamilton on Tuesday afternoon.

"It is obvious that he drowned but if there is anything else of concern it will be established during the post-mortem. If there is we will take it from there."

It was understood Khadka was boarding in Mount Maunganui and left his home in his car about midnight, Lal KC, the former president of Te Puke's Nepalese Association said.

"We know that he was found without clothes. We don't know what actually happened, but he had left the house about 1am the night before.

"As far as I know he stayed in the Mount in a flat situation with a Kiwi family."

Members of the Nepalese community gathered in a room at Tauranga Hospital on Monday.

"They are shocked actually at what has happened. The community here is very strong and we are here if anyone needs help and will do what we can to help."

KC had to make the call to Khadka's family back in Nepal.

"We talked with his father and he was very shocked when I rung them.

"One of his uncles then rung me up to ask what actually happened. I talked to him about what had happened, that no one knows what actually happened."

A policeman stands at Mount Main Beach. Photo: Cameron Avery.

Khadka was a "friendly guy who spoke nicely" and had a group of friends. He had recently returned to Nepal to visit his family.

He expected Khadka's body would be returned by Wednesday.

"We had been talking to the insurance company to see what we can cover to get the body home or do the funeral here, but it will depend on what the family wants."

Khadka had been studying at the National Technology Institute's Tauranga campus until four months ago.

A spokesperson there confirmed he was a student at the facility that provides training in IT and hospitality.

Coming from a landlocked country, KC said it was common for Nepalese people to be unable to swim.

"He was from the eastern part of Nepal, but we don't know if he could swim. We don't have the sea, there are kids nowdays that can swim but a lot of people can't."

Eight people have drowned, six in coastal waters, in New Zealand in the past four days.

Khadka's death have referred his death to the Coroner.