Nepal Federal Civil Service Bill development

The Nepal government is advancing the long-delayed Federal Civil Service Bill, which has faced an eight-year stalemate primarily due to a contentious ‘55/30 provision’. This rule would mandate retirement for civil servants upon reaching either 55 years of age or 30 years of service. Implementation of this provision could lead to the immediate mandatory retirement of more than 13,000 employees and increase the state’s financial burden by over Rs 25 billion.

Following endorsement by the Ministry of Finance, the bill has moved toward the Public Service Commission (PSC) for consultation. The proposed legislation also includes several other significant reforms, such as allowing lateral entry for outside experts into specialist positions, adjusting maximum entry ages to 32 for men and 35 for women, and addressing structural reforms regarding political neutrality and performance evaluations.

The Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives, Federal Affairs and General Administration is expected to revise the bill based on recommendations from the PSC before resubmitting it to the Cabinet and Parliament.