Department of Industry and IP in Nepal: Who Administers Each Right, and Where
The Department of Industry administers IP in Nepal — trademarks, patents and designs at Tripureshwor, copyright at the Registrar's Office. The full map.
Every IP journey in Nepal passes through a government counter, and most confusion starts with the wrong counter: trademark papers filed where copyright belongs, a design renewal sent to an office that never handled designs, an enforcement complaint addressed to nobody in particular.
This is the administration map — who examines what, who publishes what, and which offices handle the parts the registries do not.
In short
The Department of Industry (DOI) administers IP registration in Nepal: its Industrial Property Section in Tripureshwor, Kathmandu examines and registers trademarks, patents and industrial designs under the Patent, Design and Trade Mark Act, 2022 BS (1965), publishes the Industrial Property Bulletin, keeps the register under Section 22, and records transfers, licences and name changes. Copyright sits with the Copyright Registrar's Office under the Copyright Act, 2059 BS (2002). Enforcement reaches beyond the registries — customs at the border, Nepal Police with district administration in the market, and court review of DOI decisions. A proposed Industrial Property Bill 2082 would consolidate the industrial-property side into a single registrar.
One department, three registers
The DOI's Industrial Property Section — Tripureshwor, Kathmandu — is where Nepal's industrial-property life happens: applications are filed in Nepali on the prescribed Schedule 1 forms, examined for formality and substance, published in the Bulletin, registered and later renewed, transferred or amended. The same section issues the certificates that ground every licence, franchise and enforcement action.
The Department's reach does not stop at registration: it handles the DOI-side infringement complaints, responds to oppositions, and answers for its decisions if they are challenged in court.
The Department of Industry's IP administration map for Nepal
The proposed consolidation row is the one to watch but not to plan around: until the Bill is enacted, the current division governs every filing, deadline and fee.
| Right | Governing law | Office | Publication |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trademarks | PDTA 2022 (1965) | DOI — Industrial Property Section | Industrial Property Bulletin |
| Patents | PDTA | DOI — with technical-committee examination | Nepal Gazette (Section 7A) |
| Industrial designs | PDTA (Sections 12–15) | DOI | Published with the trademarks; 35-day objection window |
| Copyright | Copyright Act 2059 (2002) | Copyright Registrar's Office | Voluntary registration; dated certificate |
| Proposed consolidation | Industrial Property Bill 2082 (proposed) | Would create a single industrial property registrar | Not yet law |
What the DOI actually does day to day
The fee points in that list are current-practice figures from the official schedule — confirmed at payment, as with every DOI fee.
- Examines applications — formality first, then substance under Section 18: earlier conflicting marks, descriptiveness, distinctiveness
- Publishes — the Industrial Property Bulletin carries accepted applications and register events, in Nepali and English
- Keeps the register — Section 22's record of proprietors and entries; the document every dispute eventually cites
- Records changes — assignments (NPR 2,000 for a trademark), licence recordals (NPR 2,000), name and address changes (NPR 1,000)
- Issues certificates — the registration certificate that starts the 7-year trademark term and grounds enforcement
The offices around the DOI
Registration is the DOI's job; protection is shared. Nepal Customs operates at border points, where alerts and detentions intercept counterfeit goods entering the market. Nepal Police conducts raids and seizures, coordinated in practice with the area administrator and Chief District Officer. The courts sit above the administrative layer — DOI decisions are challengeable, and judicial review of Departmental decisions has a live precedent at the Patan High Court.
Copyright completes the map through the Copyright Registrar's Office, which handles voluntary registration of works — a recordal function quite different from the DOI's examination-based grants.
Practical navigation for filers
Three navigation facts prevent most first-visit friction. Applications and correspondence run in Nepali — foreign documents need certified translation. Domestic applicants attach company or industry registration, PAN and tax clearance; foreign applicants must proceed through a local agent under a notarised Power of Attorney. And fees are per application and per class under Schedule 3 — a multi-class business is a multi-application visit.
For anyone filing in person, the practical preparation (documents, forms, payment mechanics) is covered in the site's DOI office-visit guide — worth an hour before the first trip to Tripureshwor.
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This article is general information, not legal advice.