Kathmandu: Nepali citizens can now apply for a copy of their citizenship certificate at any District Administration Office (DAO), not only the one that issued the original. The change comes from the Nepal Citizenship (Fifth Amendment) Rules, 2083 and is part of the government’s 100 point governance reform agenda.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has already sent a circular to all district offices. After that, DAO Kathmandu put out a notice on Monday explaining who can use the service. It covers people whose citizenship certificate has been destroyed by fire or water, or torn and unusable. It also covers people who have lost it, need it in the new format or need a copy for any other reason.

Kathmandu Valley: Offices split by province

The Valley’s three offices expect many people from other districts, so they have divided the work by province:

• DAO Kathmandu (and offices under it): Bagmati, Gandaki and Lumbini provinces
• DAO Lalitpur: Karnali and Sudurpashchim provinces
• DAO Bhaktapur: Koshi and Madhesh provinces

When a copy will be issued

DAO Kathmandu says it will issue a copy if the applicant’s biometric details match the records in two government systems. These are the National Identity Management Information System (NIDMIS) and the Centralised Citizenship Information Management System (CCIMS). The match must be exact.

When you must go to your home district

Some applicants will still have to visit the district where they first got their citizenship. This applies if:

• the records do not match;
• the applicant wants a different name, surname, date of birth or other detail from the original certificate; or
• the certificate looks suspicious at first sight.

This is stated in the notice signed by Chief District Officer Ishwar Raj Paudel of DAO Kathmandu.