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Nepal Government Takes Tough Stance on Financial Crimes, Demands Support from Entities and Police

New Law Introduced

The Nepalese government has introduced a new law aimed at combating financial crimes, including money laundering and terrorist financing. According to the law, any entity or public corporate body can be demanded by the Department to provide support during an inquiry or investigation of an offence under this Act.

Filing of Cases

• The law allows for cases to be filed against individuals deemed to have committed an offence under this Act after investigation and inquiry.
• The Department will write to the concerned government attorney to take decision whether a case is to be filed against the individual or not.
• If the government attorney decides to file a case, the Department shall file it with the court prescribed by the Government of Nepal, publishing notice in Nepal Gazette.

Limitation

• There is no limitation to file a case relating to an offence under this Act, meaning that offenders can be prosecuted at any time.

Government as Plaintiff

• The Government of Nepal will be the plaintiff in cases related to offences under this Act.

No Obstacle to Sue Under Prevailing Laws

• A person involved in an offence under this Act can also be prosecuted under prevailing laws if the same act is punishable under another law.
• If a person has committed an offence under any prevailing law and is found to have also committed an offence under this Act, the entity or officer conducting investigation and inquiry shall inform the Department.

Confidentiality

• Investigation officers, staff, and persons involved in the investigation and inquiry are prohibited from violating confidentiality of any matter or submitted document that came to their notice during the course of investigation and inquiry, unless required by prevailing law.

Automatic Suspension

• Any official or staff of a bank, financial institution, or non-financial institution or civil servant shall be deemed to be in automatic suspension for a period they are under custody as per this Act or until the case is decided if any case has been filed against them.

Assets Deemed to Have Gained by Laundering

• If assets of a person sued for an offence under this Act are found to be unnatural in comparison to their income source or financial condition, they will be required to prove the source of earnings.
• If they fail to do so, they shall be deemed to have earned such assets by committing offences under this Act.

Offence Not Required to Be Proved

• The law states that it is not necessary to prove the acts or offence as mentioned in Section 4 for penalizing an offence under Section 3, and it will not be deemed to be barred to penalize for the offence under Section 3 simply because there was no case filed against such act or offence or the case was dismissed.

Punishment

• The law imposes punishment on offenders, ranging from fine equal to the amount involved in the offence or imprisonment from one year to four years, or both punishments.
• The punishment is increased by 10% for office bearers, chiefs, or staff of banks, financial institutions, or non-financial institutions or public servants who commit an offence.

Imposing Fines

• The law also imposes a fine of five hundred thousand rupees to a bank or financial institution and twenty-five thousand rupees to any other entity that fails to comply with the provisions of this Act.