The government has announced plans to implement Euro 6 vehicle emission, marking a significant step toward cleaner transportation in Nepal. President Ram Chandra Paudel made the announcement, presenting the government’s policies and programs for the upcoming fiscal year 2025/26 in the joint session of parliament.

The existing Vehicle Emission Standards, 2012 allows imports of motor vehicles complying to Euro 3 or equivalent emission standards. While attempts to revise the standard were made in 2017 and 2021, it stalled on the pressure from automobile importers. However, officials say the government is now committed to enforcing the new norms.

An official at the Ministry of Forests and Environment said the draft of the updated standards has been sent to the Department of Environment (DoE) for feedback. The ministry will finalize the draft within two to three months after incorporating feedback received from the DoE.

As per the draft, the government will adopt Euro 6 standards for passenger vehicles, motorcycles and commercial vehicles, and Euro 4 standards for heavy equipment and construction vehicles.

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport have already approved the draft, the forest ministry official said. “India enforced Bharat Standard 6 (BS 6) in 2020, and China has Euro 6 equivalent emission standards. It is high time we upgraded our emission standards,” he added.

Since Nepal makes most of its vehicle imports from India and China—countries which are already producing Euro 6-compliant models, automobile dealers say the switch to Euro 6 will not affect supply.

Automobile dealers, however, say that any change in emission standards should come with an advance notice. An official of NADA Automobiles Association said they have recommended a six-month transition period. “We are ready to implement new emission standards. But sudden enforcement could hurt businesses as they would find it difficult to sell off existing orders. There is also a need to train technicians,” the official added. 

Some dealers, however, say the upgrade to Euro 6 would make motor vehicles expensive. “There is no rush to make the switch as we are seeing a healthy growth in electric vehicle imports,” a former office-bearer of NADA said on condition of anonymity.

Ministry officials said the upcoming budget might provide a clear timeline on switching to Euro 6 emission standards.