Summary✨
- Telecom service providers owe the government over Rs 35.36 crore in royalty fees for FY 2080/81.
- The Telecommunications Regulations mandate a 4% royalty payment from licensed providers based on their annual income.
- 45 service providers reported a total revenue of Rs 8 arba, 84 crore, necessitating payment of the outstanding royalty and fines.
- Additionally, the government still awaits Rs 16.21 crore in RTDF from 13 service providers, who must pay 2% of their annual revenue within 6 months after the fiscal year end.
Various telecom service providers haven’t cleared their royalties to the government for FY 2080/81. The 63rd summarized report from the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) shows that the government has yet to receive over Rs 35.36 crore in royalty fees from the service providers.
According to the office, the Telecommunications Regulations, 2054, hold that Nepal’s licensed service providers must submit 4% of their annual income in royalties every year. The report shows a delay in the collection of these fees from the companies from FY 2080/81. Check out the best ISPs in Nepal.
According to the report, 45 telecom service providers posted an annual revenue of Rs 8 arba, 84 crore, and 21 lakh. That means they are in need to pay Rs 35 crore, 36 lakh, and 84 thousand in royalty and fines. The office recommends that the government speed up the collection of these fees from the concerned entities.
Likewise, the government is yet to receive Rs 16.21 crore in RTDF from 13 service providers out of their annual revenue of Rs 8 arba, 10 crore, and 95 lakh. According to the report, these 13 service providers are out of the total 261 licensed by NTA. According to NTA’s RTDF Bylaw, 268 of 5, a company must pay 2% of its annual revenue in RTDF fee within 6 months after the end of the existing fiscal year.
The government aims to use RTDF for mobile network expansion in the coming years.
