According to Section 5.6.2 of the Telecommunication Policy Act, foreign ownership in the telecommunications sector is subject to a maximum equity limit of 80%.

The government owns shares in some telecommunications companies. In particular, Nepal Telecom (NTC), or Nepal Doorsanchar Company Limited (NDCL), the incumbent telecommunications operator, is a state-owned company with approximately 92% state shareholding.

Nepal does not mandate functional separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market. However, there is an obligation of accounting separation. According to Section 5.4 of the Guideline for tariff Approval for Telecommunications Services, all licensees are required to establish and maintain separate accounts for each service specified in the license.

Under Section 33 of Nepal’s Telecommunications Act, 2053 (1997), where telecommunications-related land, buildings, plant, equipment, or other facilities have been developed with more than 50% foreign investment, ownership of those assets transfers to the Government upon expiry of the licence period. Under Section 33(2), the former licensee may repurchase the assets at a price fixed by the Government and, upon obtaining a new licence, continue operating the telecommunications service.

According to Section 5.6.2 of the Telecommunication Policy Act, foreign ownership in the telecommunications sector is subject to a maximum equity limit of 80%.

Pursuant to Art. 3(2) of the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act, an industry operating with foreign investment may not reinvest profits earned, or otherwise make foreign investment, in any industry listed in the Act’s Schedule. Under the Schedule relating to Art. 3(2), foreign investment in consultancy services is subject to a maximum foreign equity cap of 51%. The Schedule further provides that foreign investment is prohibited in certain service activities, including computer training services and accounting, business of mass communication media (including online news), engineering, and legal consultancy services.

Pursuant to Art. 27 of the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act, 2019 (FITTA), an enterprise with foreign investment must fill expert positions in top-level management, as well as high-level technical, managerial, and technical roles, with Nepali citizens. Where the enterprise is unable to fill such expert positions domestically and it is necessary to secure the transfer of technical knowledge or skills, it may employ foreign nationals in accordance with the applicable law.

Nepal operates a prior-approval screening regime for foreign direct investment and certain foreign acquisitions under the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act, 2019 (FITTA). Under Section 15(1), a foreign investor must apply to the competent approving authority before making an investment, and, upon completion of the prescribed documentation, approval must be issued within seven days (Section 15(2)). The Act allocates approval competence by investment size, with the Department of Industry (DOI) responsible for investments up to NPR 6 billion (approx. USD 39.6 million) and the Investment Board Nepal responsible for investments above that threshold (Section 17).
Amendments adopted in March 2025 further introduced a requirement for prior approval before a foreign investor may sell or transfer, in whole or in part, its equity to domestic parties.
In addition, Section 3(3) of the FITTA also prohibits foreign investment below a minimum amount to be set by Government notice. The minimum FDI threshold is reported to have been set at NPR 20 million (approx. USD 132,000) under the FY 2079/80 (2022) budget framework, replacing the previously applied NPR 50 million threshold.
However, it is reported that, for foreign investment below NPR 500 million in designated sectors, an online “automatic route” has operated since 2019 for the submission and approval of projects, and that no minimum threshold applies to IT-sector projects processed through this automatic route.

It is reported that Nepal lacks sufficient resources to maintain qualified patent examiners, and enforcement officials are not adequately trained. In addition, it is reported that insufficient fines do not deter patent infringement.

Nepal is not a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Nepal has a clear regime of copyright exceptions that follows the fair use model, which enables the lawful use of copyrighted work by others without obtaining permission. Art. 17 of the Copyright Act explicitly adopts the fair use model, allowing limited portions of a published work to be cited without the author's or copyright holder's authorisation, provided such use does not prejudice their economic rights. In such cases, the source and author’s name (if indicated) must be appropriately credited. Arts. 18–23 of the Copyright Act outline additional exceptions, including reproduction for personal use, educational purposes, or use by libraries and archives, as well as reproduction, broadcasting, or communication of works for public information purposes, among others.

It is reported that protecting intellectual property rights remains a significant challenge in Nepal, as existing laws and regulations are outdated and ineffective, and enforcement is inconsistent. This situation is further compounded by difficulties in preventing the sale of digital media.

Nepal has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.