KATHMANDU, June 11: The State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the House of Representatives has endorsed a bill that allows individuals to acquire Nepali citizenship in the name of their mother.
The bill, introduced by the government to amend the existing Nepal Citizenship Act 2063, was passed on Tuesday following a full day of deliberations among committee members.
Introduced as the “Nepal Citizenship (First Amendment) Bill, 2081,” the legislation was tabled to address long-standing issues concerning citizenship rights, particularly in cases where the father is either untraceable or his identity remains unknown. With the committee's endorsement, the bill is now set to be presented before the House of Representatives. Once the bill has been passed by the lower house of Parliament, it will be sent to the National Assembly for final approval.
According to Committee Chair Ramhari Khatiwada, the committee passed the bill by incorporating minor revisions while retaining the government’s main proposal largely intact.
A key provision of the bill allows for the issuance of a citizenship certificate based on the mother’s name in cases where the father is missing or where no information about him is available. This provision is in line with a series of past verdicts by the Supreme Court that have directed authorities to issue citizenship based on maternal identity.
For instance, in a writ filed in 2077 BS (2020 AD) concerning Suraj Ghimire, the apex court had issued a mandamus order instructing the authorities to grant him Nepali citizenship in his mother’s name, as his father was declared missing. The verdict read: “As the father is missing, issue a Nepali citizenship certificate to the applicant, Suraj Ghimire, based on his mother’s name.”
Likewise, in another 2067 BS (2010 AD) writ involving Sabina Damai, the Supreme Court had ordered that she be granted citizenship based on her mother's name. Similarly, a 2068 BS (2011 AD) order by the Supreme Court stated that a person born within the territory of Nepal to either a Nepali father or mother has the right to obtain a citizenship certificate from the district where the birth occurred. Taking into account these precedents, the government brought forth the new amendment bill to formally enshrine the right to maternal-based citizenship in law.
Refusing to grant citizenship in name of mother is unconstituti...
In addition to domestic births, the bill also addresses the legal status of children born abroad to Nepali mothers. The committee has agreed to the government’s proposal to grant naturalized citizenship to such children under specific conditions. Children born overseas, whose father's identity is not known, but who reside in Nepal, and whose mothers have given up their foreign citizenship, will now be eligible for naturalized Nepali citizenship.
To address these cases, a new sub-clause 5(a) has been proposed under Section 5 of the Nepal Citizenship Act 2063. This provision states that a person born abroad to a Nepali mother, who resides in Nepal, has not obtained any foreign citizenship or passport, and whose father’s identity is unknown, may obtain naturalized Nepali citizenship based on a personal declaration (sworn statement) as per legal requirements.
The bill also introduces an important change in Section 8(ka) of the Act, allowing individuals to leave blank the section in their citizenship certificate that requires information about their father’s name, surname, and address, if they choose not to include it. This move reflects another key interpretation of the law by the Supreme Court in cases where individuals did not wish to disclose their father’s identity.
A significant example is the 2068 BS (2011 AD) verdict in the case of Kristina Maharjan. In this case, her mother had submitted a recommendation letter affirming that Kristina’s father, Lokesh Subedi Jaisi, was untraceable and had never cared for his daughter. Furthermore, Kristina had stated that she had never seen her father and did not wish to include him as her father on official documents. Respecting her request, the Supreme Court ordered the government to issue her a citizenship certificate without mentioning her father's name, based solely on a personal declaration.
The bill also makes provision for granting naturalized citizenship to individuals whose father or mother had obtained Nepali citizenship based on birth, but who passed away before their child was able to apply for citizenship. If, for example, a person’s mother has acquired citizenship by birth and later passed away, and the father was never a Nepali citizen or is unknown, the child will now be eligible for naturalized citizenship. This provision is supported by a precedent set in a 2072 BS (2015 AD) writ filed by Shweta Srivastava against the District Administration Office. The Nepalgunj Appellate Court had issued a mandamus order stating that, considering the sensitivity of citizenship-related matters, the petitioner’s application for citizenship should be approved.
Additionally, the bill includes a new provision to issue “minor identity cards” to children under the age of 16. This move is intended to maintain identification records for minors until they reach the age of acquiring full citizenship.
During the committee meeting, Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak clarified that the issues related to Non-Resident Nepalis (NRNs) and Gurkha soldiers would be addressed through separate legislation. NRNs have been demanding citizenship equivalent to that of Nepali nationals. During Monday’s meeting of the committee, representatives from the Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA) reiterated this demand.
Likewise, former British Gurkha soldiers, despite holding British residential visas or having acquired British naturalized citizenship, have proposed that their children be granted citizenship by descent in Nepal. This matter too will be handled separately, the minister informed.
Originally, the government had registered this amendment bill in the House of Representatives on January 29, 2025, with plans to fast-track it without sending it to a parliamentary committee. However, on March 31, the bill was eventually referred to the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee for deliberation. A total of 35 lawmakers had submitted amendment proposals.
Explaining the urgency of the bill, Home Minister Lekhak said that due to the rising number of court cases and public grievances related to citizenship, it had become the government's responsibility to promptly resolve the issue. The fast-tracking of the bill was therefore essential to provide relief and certainty to affected citizens.
Another key provision passed by the committee enables the delegation of authority for issuing citizenship to first-class non-gazetted officers (subbas) in situations where the gazetted chief of an office is on leave or has been transferred. This proposed arrangement is intended to ensure continuous service delivery in the distribution of citizenship certificates. The bill specifies that in offices headed by gazetted officers, the rights can be delegated to non-gazetted first-class officers if needed, thereby facilitating smoother operations.
