United Telecom Limited’s telecommunications licence has legally been automatically cancelled after the company failed to pay its renewal fee and outstanding dues, but the Nepal Telecommunications Authority has yet to make a formal decision or issue a public notice confirming the cancellation.

UTL’s licence renewal deadline expired on September 4. The NTA board of directors was supposed to take a formal decision on the matter from September 5, but as of Wednesday, the regulator said the issue was still “under process”.

Min Prasad Aryal, spokesperson for the telecom regulator, told Kantipur Daily that discussions on the matter were continuing at the board level and that the process was moving forward.

A public notice will be issued once an official decision is made.

“Due to the public holiday on Tuesday [Gen Z uprising anniversary], the matter has been under consideration by the board,” Aryal said Wednesday. “A decision will be made soon.”

Under the prevailing law, a telecommunications licence must be renewed within the stipulated period, failing which it is automatically cancelled. Once a licence is automatically cancelled, the regulator is required to immediately publish a notice to that effect.

The defunct company’s total outstanding dues and renewal fees payable to the government amount to around Rs31 billion.

The renewal fee alone is Rs20 billion, while the additional 15 percent fee for late payment and penalties exceeds Rs3 billion. In addition, outstanding royalty, Rural Telecommunications Development Fund contributions and frequency fees amount to more than Rs7.5 billion, according to NTA officials.

UTL is a joint venture between Indian telecommunications companies and Nepali investors. The company obtained a basic telephone service licence on September 5, 2016. It has 80 percent foreign investment and 20 percent Nepali investment.

Among its Indian shareholders, state-owned Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited holds 26.68 percent, Telecommunications Consultants India Limited holds 26.66 percent and Tata Communications holds 26.66 percent. Nepali investor Nepal Ventures Private Limited owns the remaining 20 percent.

Nepal Ventures is a company owned by Raj Bahadur Singh, son-in-law of former king Gyanendra. Singh is also UTL’s chairman.

Before the renewal deadline expired, UTL sent applications and letters to the telecom regulator and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.

Aryal said the company had applied for renewal on June 3, three months before the deadline as required by the rules, but had failed to pay the renewal fee and its old outstanding dues.

UTL, however, claims that it repeatedly wrote to the regulator, the Communications Ministry, the Department of Industry and Nepal Rastra Bank regarding licence renewal, instalment payments for outstanding dues, and approval of foreign investment and loans.

Singh said a letter sent to the regulator on September 7 contained details of the company’s correspondence over the years as well as its grievances.

The letter states that although UTL had submitted an application to the Department of Industry on October 10, 2014, to expand its business capacity and increase capital, the department had not taken any decision even after 13 years.

In a letter sent to the government on May 25, 2026, the company requested that the impact of the Covid pandemic be recognised as force majeure, that it be facilitated in transitioning to 5G services, and that frequency fees for the period during which the frequencies were unused be waived.

The company said that if these matters were facilitated, it would bring in $500 million in foreign investment and provide a bank guarantee or financial instrument worth Rs10 billion, including the outstanding dues.

In a letter sent to the government on September 4, the company requested permission to initially pay Rs13.53 billion if its proposals were approved and to pay the remainder in instalments.

UTL sought facilitation citing Covid, delays in approval of foreign investment, and assistance in converting its 2G and 3G licences to 5G. For this, it also submitted a proposal to bring in foreign investment worth $500 million.

UTL formally applied to the NTA for licence renewal on June 3, 2026. The authority wrote to the company on June 3 and July 8 asking it to pay the renewal fee in a lump sum.

The company replied on June 5 and July 14, proposing to pay Rs13.46 billion within 30 days of approval of the foreign investment and the remaining amount in instalments over 10 years.

A UTL director said the company also wrote to the Communications Ministry on August 7, asking it to facilitate the same proposal.

According to UTL management, the company has already reached agreements to raise foreign loans through SBI Bank, Mauritius and Vedaj Opportunities Fund, according to the letter.

It said it had agreed to bring in a $55 million loan to pay outstanding dues owed to the government and had submitted an application to Nepal Rastra Bank and the One-Stop Service Centre of the Department of Industry on August 25.

UTL has complained that Nepal Rastra Bank returned the documents on September 3 without even initiating the process.

“Government agencies have subjected us to serious discrimination and injustice,” the director said, requesting anonymity fearing reprisal from the government. “Nepal Telecom and Ncell have been allowed to pay their renewal fees in instalments, but we have been denied the same option.”

“By keeping our application to increase our capital pending for 13 years and returning our foreign-loan application, the authorities have discouraged foreign investment,” he said.

NTA officials say the Cabinet has yet to decide on UTL’s demands and proposals and that its licence cannot be renewed until all outstanding dues are paid in full.

According to the prevailing law, the total period of a telecommunications service licence can run for a maximum of 25 years, but is issued for only 10 years at a time.

Accordingly, a service provider must renew its licence before the initial 10-year period expires.