Parliamentary Legal Reforms 2026

Nepali households are rapidly moving investments from gold and land to capital markets, with Demat accounts rising from 1.7 million in 2020 to over 6.9 million in 2025, accompanied by growth in mutual funds despite challenges like financial illiteracy.

Finance Ministry Secretary Dr. Ghanshyam Upadhyay emphasized financial sector governance and reform as key priorities, noting the need to amend the Nepal Rastra Bank Act to strengthen governance and incorporate IT developments.

Nepal’s non-performing loan ratio tripled to 4.62% by mid-2025, with rising unrecoverable loans mainly in fishery, trade, and construction sectors, highlighting increasing financial stress despite economic growth.

Nepal Rastra Bank increased margin lending limits, extended loan relief for government contractors, prolonged working capital deadline enforcement, and eased National ID rules for migrants and children to improve financial inclusion and credit policy.

The Securities Board of Nepal announced reforms to enhance investor protection and market development, including streamlined IPO approvals, improved margin trading, and enhanced measures against securities-related crimes and market manipulation.

Nepal Rastra Bank instructed banks to reduce dormant accounts by mid-2026 through amended directives and improved customer notification practices via phone, SMS, or email.

Nepal's House of Representatives scheduled a meeting at 11 AM to discuss key reports including the Attorney General's Annual Report and the National Service Corps Bill.

Eighteen MPs proposed amendments to the Nepal Rastra Bank Bill focusing on digital banking recognition, director qualifications, regional banking concepts, and governance improvements.

Nepal's Parliament sent the Nepal Rastra Bank (Third Amendment) Bill and the Tourism Bill to committees for clause-by-clause discussion, following a unanimous parliamentary decision.

Nepal's Rastriya Swatantra Party adopted a statute granting party chair Rabi Lamichhane the authority to remove the parliamentary party leader for failure to follow policy directives, centralizing party leadership control.

A bill was introduced to reaffirm the National Investigation Department’s placement under the Prime Minister’s Office, reversing a previous change and reigniting an eight-year political struggle over intelligence agency control.

A bill to revive the Nepal Special Service Act, 2042 was presented to keep the National Investigation Department under the Prime Minister's Office for national security.

Nabil Bank CEO Manoj Gyawali called for legal and practical reforms in Nepal's banking sector, urging revision of loan classification rules and better coordination between monetary policies and government payments to mitigate risk and reduce non-performing loans.

A new Company Act draft proposes tiered minimum capital requirements, centralized corporate social responsibility fund contributions, and stricter beneficial ownership disclosures to modernize business regulation.

The Public Procurement (Second Amendment) Bill 2083 was passed aiming to accelerate development projects, enhance contract quality, and introduce an Infrastructure Court for stalled projects.

Nepal's Parliament passed the Prevention of Money Laundering (Third Amendment) Bill 2083 to help remove Nepal from the international 'Grey List' within two years, emphasizing strict implementation and governance.

Nepal's House of Representatives unanimously approved the Bill to Raise Public Debt, 2083, allowing government borrowing from domestic and international sources to finance long-term development projects.

Nepal's House of Representatives passed the Finance Bill 2083 by majority vote, rejecting most amendment proposals related to tax provisions and the revenue framework.

Four replacement bills for government ordinances were presented in Nepal's House of Representatives concerning public procurement, money laundering prevention, cooperatives, and health sciences laws, intended to supersede prior ordinances.

Nepal's government revived a bill to reform domestic aviation liability and insurance laws, aligning with international standards and enhancing passenger protections including higher compensation limits.

A legal amendment was proposed to apply polygamy liability equally to men, women, and sexual minorities, alongside revisions to marriage age, abortion, and sexual offense laws.

The Ministry of Law proposed amendments to Nepal's National Penal Code addressing child marriage, same-sex marriage recognition, and abortion decriminalization, maintaining marriage age at 20 with exceptions for consensual 18–20 year olds.

Out of eight ordinances issued by Nepal's government in April, four have been accepted by Parliament and are on track to become laws, while four face automatic invalidation for lack of approval within 60 days.