Nepal

Nepal

This page gathers key information on the Kingdom of Nepal's negotiations to join the WTO.  The Kingdom of Nepal became the 147th WTO member on 23 April 2004.  Nepal is the first LDC to join the WTO through the full working party negotiation process.

Page for Nepal as a Member

Related news View the Commitments Database

Accession status:

Member

Current status in the accession process

Multilateral process
Plurilateral process
Bilateral process
Working Party established
Memorandum of the Foreign Trade Regime (MFTR)
Factual Summary
Draft Working Party Report (DWPR)
Agriculture
Any other area of WTO rules, as necessary
Technical Verification of Goods and Services Schedules / Small Group Consultation
Agreed elements are added to draft Report (DWPR) & draft Schedules, as applicable
Initial goods offer
Initial services offer
Bilateral Market Access Negotiations on Goods
Bilateral Market Access Negotiations on Services
Draft Goods Schedule
Draft Services Schedule
Draft Accession Package adopted, ad referendum, by the Working Party
Formal action by General Council/Ministerial Conference
Acceptance by Acceding Government
Notification of acceptance
Membership
I. Overview
Show all GATT WTO
Application received
L/6507
Accession Working Party established
C/M/234
Terms of Reference & accession Working Party membership
L/6532
( +revisions)
Application received
WT/ACC/NPL/1
(Request to transform the Working Party on the Accession of Nepal to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1947 into a WTO accession Working Party. As per document WT/ACC/NPL/1 of 19 December 1995, the Working Party on the Accession of Nepal to the GATT 1947 was transformed into a WTO Accession Working Party, in accordance with the decision adopted by the General Council on 31 January 1995. Document WT/ACC/NPL/1 also reproduced the terms of reference of the Working Party. At the time, as indicated in the document, a Chairperson of the Working Party was yet to be nominated.)
Accession Working Party established
WT/ACC/NPL/1
Terms of Reference & accession Working Party membership
WT/ACC/NPL/1
; WT/ACC/NPL/4 + (revisions)
Chairpersons
Order Presiding between Chairperson
Order
Between dates
10/2002 - 04/2004
Chairperson
Ambassador Pierre-Louis GIRARD (Switzerland)
Order
Between dates
01/2000 - 10/2002
Chairperson
Ambassador Roger FARREL (New Zealand)
Formal meetings
Date of the meeting Convening notice Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation Statement(s) by Working Party members Delegation list Other documents for the meeting News item
1st
Date of the meeting
Convening notice

WTO/AIR/1293
Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation
Statement(s) by Working Party members
Delegation list
Other documents for the meeting
News item
2nd
Date of the meeting
Convening notice

WTO/AIR/1872
Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation
Statement(s) by Working Party members
Delegation list
Other documents for the meeting
News item
3rd
Date of the meeting
Convening notice
Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation
Statement(s) by Working Party members
Delegation list
Other documents for the meeting
News item
Plurilateral Meetings
Date of the meeting Convening notice Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation
Date of the meeting
Convening notice
Statement(s) by the Head of the Delegation
II. Multilateral Negotiations
Memorandum on the Foreign Trade Regime (MFTR)
WT/ACC/NPL/2
(+ addenda & corrigendum)
Initial cycle(s) of Questions and Replies, following the circulation of the MFTR
WT/ACC/NPL/3
(+ corrigendum)
Factual Summary of Points Raised
Additional Questions & Replies
WT/ACC/NPL/9
Elements of a Draft Report of the Working Party
Draft Report of the Working Party
WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/5
(+ revisions)
Agriculture including Questions & Replies (WT/ACC/22/Add.1)
WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/1
WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/2
(+ revision & corrigendum)
SPS Checklist (WT/ACC/22/Add.2)
WT/ACC/NPL/6
TBT Checklist (WT/ACC/22/Add.2)
WT/ACC/NPL/5
TRIPS Questionnaire (WT/ACC/22/Add.2)
Import Licensing Procedures Questionnaire (WT/ACC/22 + revisions)
Customs Valuation Checklist (WT/ACC/22 + revisions)
State-Trading Questionnaire (WT/ACC/22 + revisions)
Draft Subsidies Notification (WT/ACC/22/Add.2)
Legislative Action Plan (LAP)
WT/ACC/NPL/10
(+ revision)
Rule-specific Action Plans
WT/ACC/NPL/7
(IP-specific) (+ revision)
WT/ACC/NPL/12
(SPS-specific)
WT/ACC/NPL/13
(TBT-specific)
WT/ACC/NPL/14
(IP-specific)
WT/ACC/NPL/15
(Custom Valuation)
Legislation and implementing regulations
Legislation notice Notified legislation
WT/ACC/NPL/3/Add.1
(+ corrigendum)
  • Patent, Design and Trade-Mark Act (1965)
  • Food Act (1966)
  • Food Rules (1970)
  • Plants Quarantine Act 2029 (1972)
  • Plants Quarantine Rules 2031 (1975)
  • Plant Protection Act 2029
  • Customs Act (1962, amended 1997)
  • Customs Rules (1970)
  • Copyright Act (1965)
  • Summary Trial Procedure Act (1972)
  • Nepal's Trade and Transit Agreements 1993
  • Treaty of Transit, Treaty of Trade and Agreement of Co-operation to Control Unauthorised Trade between His Majesty's Government of Nepal and the Government of India 1991 (as amended and updated to 1999)
  • Schedules to Nepalese commitments in SAARC under SAPTA Agreement
WT/ACC/NPL/3/Add.2
  • Feed Act (Animal Concentrate) 2033 (1996)
  • Copyright Act (First Amendment) 2054 (1997)
WT/ACC/NPL/3/Add.3
  • Patent, Design and Trade-Mark Act (1965)
  • Food Act (1966)
  • Food Rules (1970)
  • Plants Quarantine Act 2029 (1972)
  • Plants Quarantine Rules 2031 (1975)
  • Plant Protection Act 2029
  • Customs Act (1962, amended 1997)
  • Customs Rules (1970)
  • Copyright Act (1965)
  • Summary Trial Procedure Act (1972)
  • Nepal's Trade and Transit Agreements 1993
Consultation documents
Consultation notice Notified consultation document
WT/ACC/NPL/2/Add.2
  • Nepal's Customs Tariff 1997/1998
WT/ACC/NPL/3/Add.1
  • Customs Tariff (electronic format)
WT/ACC/NPL/3/Add.3
  • Customs Tariff (electronic format)
WT/ACC/NPL/8
(+ revision)
  • Check-list of Documents
WT/ACC/NPL/11

 Customs Tariff (Fiscal Year 2002/2003)
WT/ACC/NPL/17
  • Statements from Brazil regarding Paragraph 134 of the Draft Working Party Report
III. Bilateral Market Access Negotiations
Goods Offer(s)
WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/3
; WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/3/Rev.2
Services Offer(s)
WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/4
; WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/4/Rev.2
Register of Bilateral Market Access Agreements
Register
Draft Goods Schedule
WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/3/Rev.3
Draft Services Schedule
WT/ACC/SPEC/NPL/6
(+ corrigendum)
Goods and Services Technical Verification Meetings
IV. Accession Package (“Terms of Accession”, de-restricted)
Ministerial Conference/General Council Decision on the Accession
WT/MIN(03)/19
Protocol of Accession
WT/MIN(03)/19
Report of the Working Party
WT/ACC/NPL/16
Goods Schedule (Schedule of Concessions and Commitments Annexed to the GATT 1994)
WT/ACC/NPL/16/Add.1
Services Schedule (Schedule of Specific Commitments Annexed to the GATS)
WT/ACC/NPL/16/Add.2
V. Instrument of Acceptance
Notification of Acceptance and Entry Into Force of the Protocol of Accession
WT/LET/464

VI. Date of Membership: on the 23/04/2004, Nepal became the 147th WTO member.

News item

VII. Since 1995, this is the 19th economy that joined the WTO pursuant to Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement.

All documents on the accession of Nepal in Documents Online by date of circulation
Note:

The de-restriction of documents is a key component of the transparency obligations of the Multilateral Trading System. Paragraphs 1 and 2(e) of the Ministerial Council Decision WT/L/452 of 14 May 2002 provide that “documents relating to working parties on accession shall be restricted and shall be automatically de-restricted upon the adoption of the report of the working party” by the Ministerial Conference/General Council. The time of completion of the de-restriction process depends on the amount and complexities of the documents involved. Prior to 2002, the de-restriction of accession-related documents was governed by a different set of rules (i.e. General Council Decision WT/L/160/Rev.1 of 26 July 1996), which only affect documents circulated prior to 2002.