KATHMANDU: The Department of Industry under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies publishes monthly data on foreign direct investment approvals through its Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Section.

The most recent report, released June 15 covers two distinct periods: the single month of May 15 to June 14, 2026, and the cumulative total for the eleven months of the fiscal year from July 17, 2025 to June 14, 2026.

It covers approvals through the Approval Route and the Automatic Route, as well as Share Purchase Agreements, Share Subscription Agreements, Technology Transfer Agreements, repatriation of dividends and royalties, and business visa recommendations.

To be precise, does the report cover the full fiscal year or just the most recent month?

The report covers both, and the two are clearly separated in the data. The single-month section covers May 15 to June 14, 2026, the second last month of the current fiscal year. The cumulative section covers July 17, 2025 to June 14, 2026, which is the first eleven months of the fiscal year 2025/26.

The document also includes a comparative table setting of the eleven months of current fiscal year’s figures against the equivalent period of the previous fiscal year running from July 17, 2024 to June 14, 2025.

This distinction matters enormously because the commitment values and project counts look very different depending on whether you are reading the single month or the eleven months of the fiscal year. The fiscal year 2025/26 figure is Rs. 47.62 billion in total FDI commitment in eleven months; the single-month figure is Rs. 2.30 billion.

Each has its own column in the source document and they are not interchangeable.

What is the total foreign investment commitment for the eleven months of fiscal year  2025/26?

For the eleven months of the fiscal year from July 17, 2025 to June 14, 2026, total foreign direct investment commitment reached Rs 47.62 billion. This is broken down as follows: 711 industries were approved through the standard Approval Route, committing Rs 39.9 billion.

A further 203 industries were cleared through the Automatic Route, committing Rs 7.72 billion. Together, 914 foreign investment approvals were registered during the fiscal year.

In addition, 53 approvals came through Share Purchase Agreements and Share Subscription Agreements, with a total commitment of Rs 111.19 billion. There were 48 Technology Transfer Agreement approvals during the year.

Total committed employment from all FDI approvals for the eleven months of current fiscal year stands at 25,450 persons.

What did foreign investment look like specifically in the single month of May 15 to June 14, 2026?

In the most recent month alone, the Department of Industry approved 178 foreign investment industries through the Approval Route with a commitment of Rs 1.95 billion. Eight industries were cleared through the Automatic Route with a commitment of Rs 345.8 million.

Total FDI approvals for the month came to 186. Six approvals were registered through Share Purchase Agreements or Share Subscription Agreements, with a commitment of Rs 151.6 million. Three Technology Transfer Agreement approvals were registered in the month.

Total committed employment from approvals in this single month stands at 1,221 persons. Of the FDI industries approved in the month by scale, 894 were small-scale, 11 were medium-scale, and 9 were large-scale.

 How does the current fiscal year compare to the previous one?

The report includes a direct comparison of the eleven months of current fiscal year against the equivalent period of fiscal year 2024/25, covering July 17, 2024 to June 14, 2025.

Total industry registrations with foreign investment came in at 2,066 in the previous fiscal year against 1,774 in the current one, a drop of 292 registrations. Technology Transfer Agreement approvals fell from 372 to 345.

Business visa recommendations fell from 866 to 736. The repatriation figures show significant changes. Automatic Route commitment grew dramatically: from Rs 1.68 billion in the previous fiscal year to Rs 5.58 billiion in the current one, more than tripling.

Dividend repatriation in Nepali rupees fell from Rs 9.917 million to Rs 1.521. Royalty repatriation under Technology Transfer Agreements also fell, from Rs 831 million to Rs. 543 million.

Cumulative FDI inflow grew from Rs 9.60 billion to Rs 17.80 billion, a marked increase of Rs 8.20 billion year on year.

Which sector received the most foreign investment by committed value in the full fiscal year?

By committed value across the full fiscal year, agriculture and forestry-based industries led with Rs 22.09 billion, accounting for 46 percent of total sectoral commitment.

Tourism came second at Rs 13 billion, representing 27 percent. Service industries were third at Rs 4.59 billion, at 10 percent.

Manufacturing attracted Rs 3.57 billion, at 8 percent. Information and communications technology drew Rs 2.37 billion, at 5 percent.

Infrastructure received Rs 1.65 billion at 3 percent, energy received Rs 234 million at 1 percent, and minerals received Rs 115 million at less than 1 percent.

The total across all categories matches the cumulative Approval Route and Automatic Route commitment of Rs 47.61 billion

Which sector had the most approved projects by count, and why does the picture look so different from the commitment value ranking?

By number of approved projects, the information and communications technology sector dominated with 577 approved projects out of a total of 914, accounting for 63 percent of all sectoral FDI approvals for the fiscal year.

Tourism was second with 202 projects at 22 percent. Service industries had 62 projects at 7 percent, manufacturing had 52 projects at 6 percent, agriculture had 16 projects at 2 percent, energy had 2, minerals had 2, and infrastructure had 1.

The contrast is stark. ICT had 577 projects but only Rs 2.37 billion in commitments, while agriculture had 16 projects but Rs 22.09 billion in commitments. This reflects a fundamental structural divide in Nepal’s foreign investment base.

The ICT and tourism sectors attract a high volume of small registrations — digital ventures, software firms, and small hospitality businesses — with low fixed-asset requirements per project.

Agriculture draws a far smaller number of projects but each carries a much larger capital commitment, reflecting large-scale agro-industry operations requiring land, equipment, and processing infrastructure.

What does the scale-wise breakdown of approved projects tell us?

For the single month of May 15 to June 14, 2026, the scale breakdown of approved FDI industries shows 894 small-scale projects, 11 medium-scale, and 9 large-scale.

For the cumulative fiscal year, the equivalent breakdown shows 183 small-scale, 3 medium-scale, and zero large-scale through the Approval Route component tabulated separately.

The dominance of small-scale approvals by count, regardless of the time period examined, reflects how Nepal’s FDI registration system is absorbing a high volume of low-capital ventures, primarily in ICT and tourism.

Large-scale projects — those above the relevant fixed capital threshold — make up a tiny fraction of total approval counts but drive the bulk of committed capital.

This pattern has implications for employment generation, since small ICT ventures typically employ far fewer people per dollar of investment than large manufacturing or agro-industry projects.

What repatriation activity occurred in the single month of May 15 to June 14, 2026?

In the most recent month, the report records three categories of repatriation. Dividend repatriation in Nepali rupees amounted to Rs. 7.986 million Royalty payments under Technology Transfer Agreements came to Rs 447 million.

Service fee payments were recorded in multiple currencies: Rs 73.31 million, INR 19.452 million, JPY 105,699.02 and USD 2,068,342.

Also recorded is a cumulative inflow figure for the fiscal year of Rs 17,803,302,030.74, with a current month inflow addition of Rs. 115,041,984.

These repatriation flows confirm that a portion of the foreign investment base already operating in Nepal is generating returns and transferring them out through legitimate channels.

The Technology Transfer Agreement royalty component is particularly significant because it reflects ongoing payments for intellectual property, technical knowledge, and systems being used by Nepal-based entities under license from foreign firms.

What visa recommendations did the Department of Industry make in the most recent month?

In May 15 to June 14, 2026, the Department of Industry recommended a total of 240 business visas. These included 95 investor visas, 85 dependent visas for family members of investors, 51 representative visas for personnel sent by foreign companies to manage their Nepal-based operations, and 9 visas for advertisement-related purposes.

One Non-Tourist visa was also recommended, with USD 342,205.71 recorded in that category. The investor visa count being the largest single category suggests genuine physical presence by foreign investors rather than purely paper registrations.

The dependent visa count of 85 indicates that a substantial number of these investors are bringing their families, pointing to longer-term commitment.

The representative visa category at 51 reflects the presence of foreign company personnel managing operations on the ground, distinct from the investors themselves.

How does Nepal’s foreign investment approval system actually work?

Nepal regulates foreign direct investment under the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act of 2019 and the Industrial Enterprises Act of 2020. The Department of Industry processes investment through two primary pathways.

The standard Approval Route requires investors to obtain explicit clearance from the department before committing capital and handles the larger share of approved project value.

The Automatic Route allows qualifying investments to proceed without prior departmental approval, streamlining the process for smaller or lower-risk categories of foreign capital.

The report also records Share Purchase Agreements and Share Subscription Agreements separately — these cover cases where foreign investors acquire stakes in existing Nepali companies or subscribe to newly issued equity, as distinct from greenfield project approvals.

Technology Transfer Agreements are tracked independently and cover the licensing of foreign technical knowledge, software, patents, or industrial processes to Nepali firms.

All four categories appear in the monthly report with their own count and commitment value columns.

What does the sector distribution of FDI tell us about Nepal’s investment priorities and gaps?

The concentration of FDI commitment value in agriculture and tourism in the current fiscal year reflects Nepal’s natural resource endowments and its comparative advantages.

Agriculture drawing Rs 22.09 billion in commitments despite only 16 approved projects suggests investor appetite for large-scale agro-industrial operations, likely linked to food processing, export potential, and supply chains.

Tourism at Rs 13 billion reflects the sector’s resilience and the continued draw of Nepal’s trekking, mountaineering, and cultural offerings even after the September 2025 disruptions.

ICT’s dominance in project count at 577 reflects global trends in digital business formation, where low fixed-asset requirements allow rapid registration of many small ventures.

What stands out most from the data is how thin the energy, infrastructure, and minerals categories remain.

Energy attracted only Rs 234.25 million across just two projects and infrastructure only Rs  1.65 billion from one project in the entire fiscal year, despite Nepal’s widely acknowledged hydropower potential and infrastructure needs.

These gaps, visible directly in the Department of Industry data, reflect the distance between Nepal’s investment potential and the foreign capital it is currently capturing.