HIV Law in Nepal 2026 — Rights, Protection and Penalty

No. HIV testing is voluntary under NCASC policy. Pre-test and post-test counselling, informed consent and confidentiality of results are mandatory. Mandatory testing by employer or insurer is not permitted.

Yes. ART / ARV is free at government ART centres under the NCASC Treat All policy since 2017, anchored in Constitution Article 35 (right to free basic health services).

Section 105 of the Muluki Aparadh Sanhita 2074 criminalises a person who knows they are HIV-positive (or Hep-B positive) engaging in unprotected sexual intercourse, or donating blood, semen, saliva, sputum or organs without disclosure. Intentional transmission attracts up to 10 years' imprisonment and NPR 100,000 fine. Negligent transmission attracts up to 3 years and NPR 30,000. A defence applies where the partner has been informed of the HIV status and has consented to the act.

No. Dismissing an employee on grounds of HIV status alone breaches Constitution Article 18 (equality and non-discrimination on health-condition grounds) and the anti-discrimination framework of the Labour Act 2074. The remedy is a writ petition to the High Court for fundamental-rights enforcement and a Labour Court claim for reinstatement and back wages. Some employers also operate workplace HIV policies that prohibit discrimination explicitly. Negotiated settlement with reinstatement is the common practical outcome.

No. Refusal of treatment on grounds of HIV status alone is discrimination under Constitution Article 18 and a breach of the right to free basic health services under Article 35. Private hospitals subject to the Public Health Service Act, the National Health Policy, and the Nepal Medical Council's professional standards face additional regulatory exposure. Complaint can be lodged with the hospital authority, the Nepal Medical Council, the NCASC, and ultimately the NHRC. Refusal does not arise at government ART centres because the system is designed to be HIV-inclusive.

Yes. Confidentiality of HIV testing and treatment records is mandated by NCASC policy and the National HIV Testing and Treatment Guidelines. Healthcare staff, counsellors, lab technicians and other handlers are bound to maintain confidentiality. Breach exposes the staff member and the institution to administrative action by the regulator (Nepal Medical Council, NCASC), professional discipline by the relevant association, civil damages, and — where the breach was intentional — possible criminal exposure under data-protection and privacy provisions.

Yes. There is no statutory bar on marrying an HIV-positive person in Nepal. Some practitioner commentary has historically listed HIV among health conditions disqualifying marriage under the older Muluki Ain framework, but the position under the Civil Code 2074 and the Constitution 2015 (Article 18 equality) is that HIV is not a marriage bar. NCASC policy supports informed decision-making by couples through pre-marriage counselling and shared testing. PLHIV have the same right to marry as anyone else, subject to informed consent of the partner.

HIV is not categorised as a "disability" under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2074 framework, which focuses on physical, sensory, intellectual and mental disabilities. However, the Constitution Article 18 protection on "health condition" / "physical condition" extends to PLHIV. Where HIV has progressed to advanced clinical stage with associated impairments, disability-rights protections under the Act 2074 may attach. PLHIV are also entitled to free basic health services under Article 35 and to non-discrimination across employment, education, healthcare and housing.

The Sunil Babu Pant v. Nepal Government decision (Writ No. 917 of 2007, NKP 2064) — while primarily a sexual-orientation case — established the constitutional principle of non-discrimination that extends to PLHIV and to key affected populations who face elevated HIV exposure (MSM, transgender persons, sex workers). The Achyut Prasad Kharel v. Office of PM line of decisions on health rights also bears on HIV access. There is no specific Supreme Court ruling on Penal Code Sec 105 yet, given the lack of prosecutions under the section.

The National Centre for AIDS and STD Control (NCASC), under the Ministry of Health and Population, is Nepal's central HIV / AIDS policy and programme body. NCASC operates the national PLHIV registry, sets HIV testing and treatment guidelines, supplies free ART to ART centres, runs prevention programmes for key affected populations, conducts surveillance, and coordinates international donor partnerships. NCASC headquarters is in Kathmandu; the operational network of government ART centres, testing sites and counselling units spans all seven provinces.

The Treat All policy, adopted by Nepal in 2017 in line with WHO global guidance, removes any CD4-count or clinical-stage threshold from ART eligibility — every HIV-positive person is eligible for free ART immediately on diagnosis. The policy is anchored in Constitution Article 35 (free basic health services) and is operationalised by NCASC through the network of government ART centres. Treat All has driven substantial improvements in viral suppression rates and reductions in HIV-related mortality across Nepal.

The free-ART entitlement under Constitution Article 35 is framed for "every citizen". A foreigner residing in Nepal can receive ART through government centres in practice, though the formal policy on long-term subsidised treatment for non-citizens varies. NRNs are typically covered as quasi-citizens. Tourists in need of urgent ART are referred to private providers; bringing a personal stock of ART through customs is permitted for personal medical use with prescription documentation. NCASC and INGOs run support services for migrant populations.

Yes. Blood donors and organ donors are screened for HIV (and other transfusion-transmissible infections) as a public-health protection rather than as a personal-health intervention. The screening is mandatory under the Nepal Red Cross Society protocols and Ministry of Health policy. Detection of HIV in a donor is communicated confidentially to the donor with referral to NCASC; the donated blood is not used. Mandatory screening here does not breach the voluntary-testing principle — it is consent on entry to the donation system, not testing of the general population.

Sex workers are one of the "key affected populations" recognised in NCASC programming, given their elevated HIV exposure. Targeted prevention, testing, and treatment services are provided through community-based organisations partnered with NCASC. Constitution Article 18 non-discrimination and Penal Code disclosure-and-consent protections apply. Sex work itself sits in a legally ambiguous space in Nepal — soliciting and brothel-keeping are restricted under Public Offences provisions, but the act between consenting adults is not specifically criminalised. HIV-related rights apply regardless.

Yes — and Section 105 of the Penal Code effectively requires disclosure before unprotected sexual intercourse if you know your HIV-positive status. Disclosure with the partner's informed consent acts as a defence to a Section 105 charge. NCASC counsellors support PLHIV with disclosure planning, including how to inform partners, family and trusted others safely. Confidentiality from health providers does not extend to the patient's own choice to disclose. Disclosure to insurers, employers, or schools is the patient's choice and is protected by Article 18 from discriminatory use.

NCASC operates a Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) programme integrated with antenatal care. HIV-positive pregnant women are offered ART throughout pregnancy and during breastfeeding, with delivery in an ART-equipped facility. The newborn is given prophylactic ART and tested at standard intervals. The programme has substantially reduced vertical transmission rates in Nepal. The framework is anchored in Constitution Article 35 (right to free basic health services) and is operationalised by NCASC in partnership with district health centres.

Yes. UNAIDS and international human-rights bodies oppose overbroad HIV criminalisation, arguing it deters voluntary testing, stigmatises PLHIV, and is rarely the appropriate response to public-health concerns. The disclosure-and-consent defence in Section 105 reflects a partial accommodation, but the section's existence draws international criticism. Nepal has no known prosecutions under Sec 105 to date, suggesting the section operates more as symbolic deterrent than as live enforcement. Civil-society pressure has sought its repeal or limitation.

Three routes: (1) writ petition to the High Court (Article 46) or Supreme Court (Article 133) for fundamental-rights enforcement on Article 18 / 35 grounds; (2) complaint to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) for investigation and report; (3) complaint to the sectoral regulator — Nepal Medical Council for healthcare staff misconduct, Labour Court for workplace discrimination, Department of Education for school-level discrimination. NCASC can also issue policy guidance and intervene through programme channels. Civil damages claim runs in parallel where loss has occurred.

When you face HIV-related discrimination in employment, healthcare, education or housing — a lawyer files the Article 18 writ or sectoral complaint and engages NHRC. When confidentiality has been breached — a lawyer pursues NHRC complaint and civil damages. When marriage / family law issues arise around HIV disclosure — a lawyer handles the family-court matter under the Civil Code 2074. And, exceptionally, when Penal Code Sec 105 has been invoked — a lawyer addresses the criminal defence including the disclosure-and-consent defence under the section.