Industry registration in Nepal is separate from company incorporation. A wholly Nepali-owned private company normally needs to register its actual industrial activity before establishing or operating it, but the Department of Industry (DOI) is not the registering authority for every industry. The correct federal, provincial or local office depends on the activity, fixed capital, location and any special conditions.
Key highlights
- Incorporation creates the company; industry registration authorises the industry it will establish or operate.
- DOI registers only defined federal cases, including Schedule-1 permission industries, foreign-investment industries, multi-province industries and certain constitutional or diplomatic-affairs cases. Other industries generally fall to the concerned province, with some small industries potentially handled locally.
- The most important early decisions are the precise activity, fixed capital, capacity, workers and site. They determine the class, authority and conditional approvals.
- Schedule-1 permission and an approved environmental study, where required, come before registration.
- Registration is not the final operating approval for every business. Sector consent may still be needed for activities such as food, construction, health, communications or tourism.
Who needs industry registration and why incorporation is not enough
No person may establish or operate an industry without registration under the Industrial Enterprises Act, 2076. The Act’s meaning of “industry” is broader than manufacturing: it includes energy, agriculture and forest products, mining, infrastructure, tourism, ICT and listed service industries. The service list includes activities such as mechanical workshops, printing, research, engineering, legal, accounting and audit services, construction, public transport, hospitals, clinics, training centres, laboratories and photography. Industrial Enterprises Act, sections 3 and 17 and Schedule 8.
For this route, company incorporation comes first. It creates the legal entity; industry registration authorises the entity’s particular activity. If you have not incorporated yet, complete private limited company registration before this step.
Choose the correct registering authority first
Do not start with a DOI form simply because the project is called an “industry.” The Act divides responsibility as follows.
| Where the industry falls | Registering authority under the Act | What this means for a domestic private company |
|---|---|---|
| Schedule-1 permission industry; foreign-investment industry; Schedule-5 constitutional matter; industry spanning two or more provinces; diplomatic-affairs academic consultancy | Department of Industry | A federal DOI route applies |
| Other industries | Concerned Provincial Government | This is the usual route for an ordinary wholly Nepali-owned private company |
| Micro-enterprises and cottage/small industries within the capital amount set by provincial law | Local level, as provided by federal and provincial law | Confirm the local threshold and procedure in the relevant province |
Source: Industrial Enterprises Act, section 4 and section 61.
Bagmati and Koshi, for example, publish their own provincial industrial-enterprise legislation. A Bhaktapur office schedule gives local registration for capital up to Rs 500,000 as one local example, not as a national threshold. Bagmati Province Industrial Enterprises Act; Koshi Province Industrial Enterprises Act; Bhaktapur fee schedule.
The practical action is to prepare a one-page project description before approaching an office: the exact activity, fixed capital, capacity, workers, location and whether the project crosses provinces. This lets the office test jurisdiction against the facts, rather than against a generic company objective.
Classify the industry accurately
Classification is not merely descriptive. It can affect the authority, local-level availability and fine bands.
| Class | Main test in the Act |
|---|---|
| Micro-industry | Fixed capital up to Rs 2 million excluding house and land, with additional entrepreneur-involvement, worker, transaction and machine-capacity conditions; not available for a section 8 permission industry |
| Cottage industry | Traditional, labour- and skill-oriented or locally based activity; machine capacity up to 50 KW; or an activity listed in Schedule 2 |
| Small industry | Fixed capital up to Rs 150 million, other than micro or cottage industry |
| Medium industry | Fixed capital above Rs 150 million and up to Rs 500 million |
| Large industry | Fixed capital above Rs 500 million |
Source: Industrial Enterprises Act, section 17.
Fixed capital includes more than machinery. The Act includes structures, office, factory or warehouse, employee housing, electrical systems and equipment, machinery, tools, transport, capital-nature office equipment, communications systems, as well as relevant capitalised pre-investment, pre-operational, interest, environmental-study and research costs. Industrial Enterprises Act, section 18.
Use the real project figures. If capital or capacity later increases, the classification changes automatically, and an approval may be needed for the change.
Clear conditional approvals before filing
Two questions can change the sequence completely.
Is the activity a Schedule-1 permission industry?
Schedule-1 industries need permission from the Industry and Investment Promotion Board before registration. The first listed item requires Council of Ministers permission. The list includes, among other activities, arms and explosives, security printing and currency, tobacco, alcohol, stone/ballast/sand excavation and processing, radio communication equipment, precious-mineral and petroleum excavation, LPG refilling, drone products and services, and industries requiring permission under prevailing law. The registration body sends its opinion to the Board within seven days; the Board decides within 30 days and a permit is issued within five days after a positive decision. Industrial Enterprises Act, section 8.
Does the project require environmental approval?
Where prevailing law requires an initial environmental examination (IEE) or environmental impact assessment (EIA), the industry may begin establishment, operation, commercial production or transaction only after approval of that report. The requirement can arise again when capital or capacity increases, objectives change or the industry relocates. An industry not requiring a study must submit the Act’s self-declaration of its grounds and mitigation undertaking. The applicable threshold depends on the exact activity, capacity and location under the Environment Protection Rules and their amendments. Industrial Enterprises Act, section 7; Environment Protection Rules, 2077.
If an environmental study is required, its preparation and approval will usually drive the project timeline more than the registration form. Confirm the environmental position before committing to a site, equipment or construction schedule.
Prepare documents in two groups
The basic company application is comparatively consistent. The additional documents change with the route.
Core documents for a company applicant
- Industry registration application form and project report or scheme.
- Company registration certificate.
- Certified memorandum and articles of association.
- Certified citizenship documents for shareholders.
The DOI also publishes an industry registration form and project details form. Its published guidance and citizen charter support this core list. DOI industry-registration guidance; DOI citizen charter.
Documents that depend on the project
- Board permission for a Schedule-1 industry.
- Approved terms of reference, IEE or EIA report where required.
- Prior consent from the relevant sector authority where applicable.
- Site records, such as land ownership or lease documentation, local recommendation or boundary evidence, where the provincial or local office asks for them.
- Activity-specific material, such as sector permissions, machinery evidence or technical-staff evidence.
Bhaktapur’s published provincial document list illustrates the site and sector evidence an office can request, including land or lease records, local recommendation and sector permissions for tourism, communications, food, construction and health activities. Treat it as a provincial example, not a universal national list. Office of Industry and Commerce, Bhaktapur.
Industry registration process: a practical sequence
- Define the proposed activity. Fix the exact service or production activity, site, capacity, fixed capital and expected workers.
- Identify the authority and class. Use those facts to determine whether the federal DOI, provincial office or local level is competent.
- Obtain prior permission where required. Complete the Schedule-1 Board route before registration where it applies.
- Resolve the environmental position. Obtain IEE/EIA approval where required, or prepare the relevant self-declaration where no study is required.
- Prepare the project report and evidence. Align the report, entity records and conditional approvals with the same project description.
- File with the competent office. DOI applications can use the Industry Management Information System; the Act permits electronic submission with digital-signature authentication.
- Respond to any query promptly. The office must identify missing details or documents and can allow up to 90 days for them. If the requirements remain unmet, it can reject the application with reasons.
- Check the certificate carefully. Once the necessary information is received, section 5 sets a five-day registration-and-certificate requirement. The certificate states the commencement period and conditions that apply to the industry. Industrial Enterprises Act, sections 4 and 5.
A micro-industry has a distinct rule allowing an application within one year after it begins operating. A refusal can be challenged within 30 days to the relevant ministry, which must decide within 30 days. Industrial Enterprises Act, sections 5 and 6.
Fees and timing: what to confirm before budgeting
The published federal materials are not fully aligned. DOI’s citizen charter describes industry registration as free and shows a 15-day service standard, while its industry-registration page publishes fee tables for proprietorship and partnership firms and refers to a revenue receipt for a private-firm applicant. Neither establishes a current company-applicant amount in the material used here. Confirm the current payable amount directly with the office that will register your company before paying or budgeting for it. DOI citizen charter; DOI industry-registration guidance.
Provincial fees are not universal. In Bhaktapur, the FY 2082/83 published schedule shows registration charges from Rs 1,000 to Rs 50,000 by capital band, plus a Rs 100 application fee, but another province, office or fiscal year can differ. The Act also provides a 35% fee/charge exemption for an industry or firm in the sole ownership of a female entrepreneur, where a fee or charge is levied under prevailing law. Bhaktapur fee schedule; Industrial Enterprises Act, section 27.
The five-day statutory period begins only after the necessary details and documents are received. DOI’s charter gives a 15-day service standard for registration and one month for industry permission. Neither period includes time for project preparation, Board permission or environmental work. Plan against the full dependency chain rather than a single form-processing number.
What to do after registration
Your certificate starts an ongoing compliance calendar.
- Start the industry within the period in the certificate and report commencement within 30 days. Apply to extend at least 30 days before that period expires; a late application may be possible within the stated period or up to six months after expiry on the prescribed delay fee.
- Submit prescribed annual details within six months after each fiscal year ends once commercial production or transaction has begun. The Act also requires nil details for a closed or non-producing year unless closure has been reported and recorded.
- Obtain approval before changing location, increasing capital or capacity, or adding or changing objectives.
- Report closure or suspension within 30 days. Cancellation of registration requires settlement of governmental liabilities, including tax and other dues.
- Expect monitoring or inspection by the Ministry or registering body.
These duties arise under Industrial Enterprises Act, sections 9–15. The federal Act sets class-based fines for operating without registration and for missing commencement or annual-detail duties; provincial and local regimes can differ for industries they regulate. Industrial Enterprises Act, section 43.
Industry registration does not replace every operating approval. For a production facility or regulated activity, map the next permissions before signing a machinery or site commitment. In particular, a manufacturing project can require separate manufacturing licensing in Nepal alongside industry registration.
Before you submit: decision checklist
- Is the company incorporated and does its object accurately describe the proposed activity?
- What are the fixed capital, capacity, worker count and exact site?
- Does the project fall within DOI, the relevant province or the local level?
- Is it a Schedule-1 permission industry?
- Does the activity, capacity or site require environmental approval?
- Which core company records and conditional site or sector records will the office require?
- What period for commencement will the certificate specify?
- Which sector approvals will remain after industry registration?
How Company Darta Nepal can help
The difficult part of industry registration is often not the form; it is matching the real project to the correct authority, classification, project data and conditional approvals before a filing is made. Company Darta Nepal can help assess the likely registration route, prepare the agreed project and entity documentation, and coordinate the agreed filing with the relevant authority. Prepare your proposed activity description, capital and capacity information, site details, company documents and any existing sector or environmental material for that discussion.
Review Company Darta Nepal’s industry approvals service to discuss an appropriate filing scope. Authority classification and registration decisions remain with the responsible government body.
