Nepal approves Citizenship Bill letting children use either parent’s name

Kathmandu, August 18

The Nepal Citizenship (Second Amendment) Bill, which gives mothers equal right to pass citizenship to their children, has been approved by the Legislation Management Committee of the National Assembly.

Once the bill becomes law, citizenship can be granted in the name of either the mother or the father, ending the father’s exclusive right to confer citizenship.

Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak told lawmakers that under the amendment, citizenship will list only one parent’s name—either the mother or father. “Our principle is the right to descent. Until now, descent was recognized only through the father. This law acknowledges that descent can also be through the mother,” he said.

Lekhak clarified that at least one parent’s name must be included on the citizenship certificate. “If someone does not want to mention the father, the mother’s name can be used, and vice versa. But both cannot be left blank. Address details will also be mandatory to distinguish individuals with similar names,” he added.

However, opposition lawmakers and women’s rights activists argue that the bill does not give mothers full, unconditional rights. Former committee chairperson and CPN (Unified Socialist) lawmaker Jayanti Devi Rai noted three key restrictions:

Mothers must submit a self-declaration if the father’s identity is unknown.

They must prove the child was born in Nepal.

Children of Nepali women married to foreign men are not fully covered, while children of Nepali men married to foreign women face no such restrictions.

The draft report states that if a mother declares the father’s identity is unknown or unverifiable, the child can receive citizenship through her. But if the declaration is found false, the mother and child could face up to one year in prison, a fine up to Rs 100,000, or both, and the citizenship would be revoked.

Rai criticized the unequal treatment, saying, “If the government truly recognized a mother’s equal right, children of Nepali women married to foreign men would be treated the same as those of Nepali men married to foreign women. But that is not happening.”

Despite the debate, the bill is seen as a significant step toward allowing citizenship in a mother’s name, in line with the constitution. The Ministry of Home Affairs will define the self-declaration format through regulations.