Government suspends mandatory use of licensed firms for high-value property deals in major cities

Kathmandu: The government of Nepal has temporarily halted a recent rule that would have required all property transactions worth more than 30 million rupees (approximately US$ 225,000) within metropolitan and sub-metropolitan cities to be conducted exclusively through licensed companies.

In a notice issued on Wednesday (March 2), the Department of Land Management and Archives instructed land revenue offices across the country not to implement the circular it had released earlier on February 19. Instead, officials have been told to continue processing transactions under the existing procedures until further notice.

Under Rule 23 (Tha) of the Land Revenue Regulations 1979, licensed individuals or institutions are legally required to operate dedicated “Land Service Centres” and process transactions through a digital land information system. However, the department said that although 36 companies have been granted licenses, none have yet received approval to operate these centers, and technical preparations remain incomplete. As a result, enforcement of the new requirement has been suspended.

Earlier, the department had published a list of companies authorized under Section 26(a) of the Land Revenue Act 1977 to facilitate property transactions. Starting March 8, buyers and sellers of property valued above 30 million rupees in metropolitan and sub-metropolitan cities were to be required to involve one of these listed firms in the transaction process.

The reform was introduced as part of the government’s effort to make real estate transactions more organized and transparent. The decision was expected to affect land revenue offices in major cities including Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bharatpur, Birgunj, and Biratnagar, along with 11 sub-metropolitan cities across the country.

With the latest directive, property buyers and sellers will not, for now, be required to engage a licensed company for high-value transactions. The public can continue registering deeds and transferring ownership through the existing system. The mandatory involvement of licensed firms is likely to be reinstated only after the approved companies receive authorization to operate their Land Service Centers and complete necessary technical preparations.