Nepal Trademark Information

Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is located in South Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, and India to the east. The population is estimated at 29,331,000 with a GDP of $33.64 billion.

In 1951, the Nepalese monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system of government. Reforms in 1990 established a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. An insurgency led by Maoist extremists broke out in 1996. The ensuing ten-year civil war between insurgents and government forces witnessed the dissolution of the cabinet and parliament and assumption of absolute power by the king. Several weeks of mass protests in April 2006 were followed by several months of peace negotiations between the Maoists and government officials, and culminated in a November 2006 peace accord and the promulgation of an interim constitution. Following a nation-wide election in April 2008, the newly formed Constituent Assembly declared Nepal a federal democratic republic and abolished the monarchy at its first meeting the following month. The Constituent Assembly elected the country's first president in July. The Maoists, who received a plurality of votes in the Constituent Assembly election, formed a coalition government in August 2008, but resigned in May 2009 after the president overruled a decision to fire the chief of the army staff.

Trademarks are assigned through the Department of Industry under the supervision of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies. Nepal is not a member of the Madrid Protocol. A trademark is valid for 7 years and may be renewed for further periods of 7 years each.