Government

conventional long form: none

conventional short form: Nepal

local long form: none

local short form: Nepal

etymology: the Newar people of the Kathmandu Valley and surrounding areas apparently gave their name to the country; the terms "Nepal," "Newar," "Nepar," and "Newal" are phonetically different forms of the same word
Government type

federal parliamentary republic
Capital

name: Kathmandu

geographic coordinates: 27 43 N, 85 19 E

time difference: UTC+5.75 (10.75 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: name derives from the Kasthamandap temple that stood in Durbar Square; in Sanskrit, kastha means "wood" and mandapa means "pavilion"; the three-story structure was made entirely of wood, without iron nails or supports, and dated to the late 16th century; it collapsed during a 2015 earthquake
Administrative divisions

7 provinces (pradesh, singular - pradesh); Bagmati, Gandaki, Karnali, Lumbini, Madhesh, Province No. One, Sudurpashchim
Independence

1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan SHAH)
National holiday

Constitution Day, 20 September (2015); note - marks the promulgation of Nepal’s constitution in 2015 and replaces the previous 28 May Republic Day as the official national day in Nepal; the Gregorian day fluctuates based on Nepal’s Hindu calendar
Constitution

history: several previous; latest approved by the Second Constituent Assembly 16 September 2015, signed by the president and effective 20 September 2015

amendments: proposed as a bill by either house of the Federal Parliament; bills affecting a state border or powers delegated to a state must be submitted to the affected state assembly; passage of such bills requires a majority vote of that state assembly membership; bills not requiring state assembly consent require at least two-thirds majority vote by the membership of both houses of the Federal Parliament; parts of the constitution on the sovereignty, territorial integrity, independence, and sovereignty vested in the people cannot be amended; amended 2016, 2020
Legal system

English common law and Hindu legal concepts; note - new criminal and civil codes came into effect on 17 August 2018
International law organization participation

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
Citizenship

citizenship by birth: yes

citizenship by descent only: yes

dual citizenship recognized: no

residency requirement for naturalization: 15 years
Suffrage

18 years of age; universal
Executive branch

chief of state: President Bidhya Devi BHANDARI (since 29 October 2015); Vice President Nanda Bahadar PUN (since 31 October 2015)

head of government: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur DEUBA (since 13 July 2021); deputy prime ministers Ishwar POKHREL, Upendra YADAV (since 1 June 2018) (an)

cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister; cabinet dominated by the Nepal Communist Party

elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by an electoral college of the Federal Parliament and of the state assemblies for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 13 March 2018 (next to be held in 2023); prime minister indirectly elected by the Federal Parliament

election results: Bidhya Devi BHANDARI reelected president; electoral vote - Bidhya Devi BHANDARI (CPN-UML) 39,275, Kumari Laxmi RAI (NC) 11,730
Legislative branch

description: bicameral Federal Parliament consists of:
National Assembly (59 seats; 56 members, including at least 3 women, 1 Dalit, 1 member with disabilities, or 1 minority indirectly elected by an electoral college of state and municipal government leaders, and 3 members, including 1 woman, nominated by the president of Nepal on the recommendation of the government; members serve 5-year terms with renewal of one-third of the membership every 2 years)
House of Representatives (275 seats statutory, current 271 with 4 vacant; 165 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 110 members directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by closed-list proportional representation vote, with a threshold of 3% overall valid vote to be allocated a seat; members serve 5-year terms); note - the House of Representatives was dissolved on 22 May 2021, but on 13 July, the Supreme Court directed its reinstatement

elections:
National Assembly - last held on 26 January 2022 (next to be held in 2024)
first election for House of Representatives held on 26 November and 7 December 2017 (next to be held on 20 November 2022)

election results:
National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NCP 42, NC 13, FSFN 2, RJPN 2; composition - men 37, women 22, percent of women 37.3%
House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NCP 174, NC 63, RJPN 17, FSFN 16, vacant 4, independent 1; composition - men 180, women 91, percent of women 33.6%; note - total Federal Parliament percent of women 33.8%
Judicial branch

highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and up to 20 judges)

judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court chief justice appointed by the president upon the recommendation of the Constitutional Council, a 5-member, high-level advisory body headed by the prime minister; other judges appointed by the president upon the recommendation of the Judicial Council, a 5-member advisory body headed by the chief justice; the chief justice serves a 6-year term; judges serve until age 65

subordinate courts: High Court; district courts
Political parties and leaders

the Election Commission of Nepal granted ballot access under the proportional system to 88 political parties for the November-December 2017 House of Representatives election to the Federal Parliament; of these, the following 8 parties won seats:
Federal Socialist Forum, Nepal or FSFN [Upendra YADAV]
Naya Shakti Party, Nepal [Baburam BHATTARAI]
Nepal Communist Party or NCP [Khadga Prasad OLI, Pushpa Kamal DAHAL]
Nepali Congress or NC [Sher Bahadur DEUBA]
Nepal Mazdoor Kisan Party (Nepal Workers' and Peasants' Party) or NWPP [Narayan Man BIJUKCHHE]
Rastriya Janamorcha (National People's Front) [Chitra Bahadur K.C.]
Rastriya Janata Party (National People's Party, Nepal) or RJPN [Mahanta THAKUR]
Rastriya Prajatantra Party (National Democratic Party) or RPP [Rajendra Prasad LINGDEN]