Background
Sometime on or about 19 August 2025, Nepalese Trademarks Registry issued a notice requiring actions as follows:

For trade marks registered before 19 August 2025 and within 7-Year renewal period, all trade mark proprietors must submit evidence of use within 60 days from the date of publication.

For Pending Applications

• Applications which remain pending due to incomplete documentation, to furnish such outstanding documents by 16 November 2025, failing which applications which have been pending for more than seven (7) years will be automatically cancelled by the Registry without further notice;
• Outstanding registration fees for applications which have been published for more than seven (7) years but remain unregistered due to non-payment of the same, should be made by 16 November 2025.

The sudden and ambiguous notice created quite a stir among international trademark owners with interest in Nepal. Just as quickly, on or about 24 September 2025, the Nepalese Trademarks Registry issued a further notice, suspending their earlier directive of 19 August 2025, due to unrelated nation-wide acts of disruption including arson, looting, etc., which resulted in the loss and destruction of records at the Registry.

New Notice
On 1 December 2025, the Nepalese Trademarks Registry issued their latest notice mandating as follows:

For Pending Applications

• Trade mark applicants with applications pending for more than seven (7) years due to incomplete documentation should file a request with the complete documentation within 90 days from said notice, ie., by 28 February 2026, failing which the application will be deemed abandoned and removed from the register without further notice;
• This new directive will apply to all trade mark applications henceforth, namely, any applications which remain pending for more than seven (7) years due to non-submission of complete documentation will be deemed abandoned and removed from the register without further notice;
• Trade mark applicants whose applications are published before 1 December 2025 and which pass through the publication window period without any oppositions must submit a request for the issuance of Registration Certificate, together with the requisite fees and/or documents, within six (6) months from the date of this notice, i.e., by 31 May 2026, failing which the application will be cancelled.

The new notice has not addressed registered trade marks or evidence of use, unlike previous. Please continue to watch this space for updates.