Nepal – Population

1. Reported Stateless Persons

Nepal reported 452 stateless persons to UNHCR in 2022, a decrease of 13 people from the reported numbers in 2021. This population is entirely composed of stateless Rohingya refugees, with UNHCR noting that they have information regarding the in situ stateless population but lack any reliable data. In 2020, Nepal reported zero stateless persons, however, it was noted that there were 371 reported stateless Rohingya refugees in that year. UNHCR has noted that a “large number of individuals lack citizenship certificates in Nepal” and that “while these individuals are not all necessarily stateless, UNHCR has been working closely with the Government of Nepal and partners to address the situation”. In 2021, it was estimated that approximately 6.3 million people in Nepal lacked citizenship documentation, which consists of 25% of the population over the age of 16.

While there is a lack of accurate estimates on the number of persons affected by statelessness in the country, it is likely in the hundreds of thousands. In 2011, UNHCR estimated the population to be as high as 800,000 affected persons, a figure which was rejected by the Government of Nepal. The large number of people affected by statelessness in Nepal can be attributed to patriarchal structures combined with discriminatory attitudes of officials in providing documentation, “a discriminatory, caste-based system, and the failure to provide a durable solution to long-term refugees and protect their children’s right to nationality”.

2. Persons at Risk of Statelessness

Ethnic minority groups including Dalit and Madheshi communities in Nepal face issues of accessing citizenship and identity documents and are at risk of statelessness. For the Dalit community, discrimination, lack of awareness, and poverty have acted as barriers to accessing citizenship.

In 2011, UNHCR estimated the population to be as high as 800,000 affected persons, a figure which was rejected by the Government of Nepal.

3. Undetermined Nationalities

UNHCR has noted that “various studies estimate that a large number of individuals lack citizenship certificates in Nepal. While these individuals are not necessarily all stateless, UNHCR has been working closely with the Government of Nepal and partners to address this situation”. In 2016 the Forum for Women, Law and Development projected that by 2021 as many as 6.7 million people would be without citizenship.

4. Stateless Refugee

All of the 452 reported stateless persons in Nepal are Rohingya refugees from Myanmar. Additionally, the US Department of State reported that 6,365 Bhutanese refugees remain in Nepal, many of whom are stateless.

Source: UNHCR, Global Trends: Forced Displacement from 2019-2022.