The Madhesh Province Government has introduced the Madhesh Province Arrears Settlement Procedure, 2026, a new framework aimed at settling outstanding government arrears and recovering public dues across the provincial administration. The procedure was approved by the provincial Cabinet under the Administrative Procedure Act, 2018, and the announcement was made from Janakpur, the base of the province government. It sets out mechanisms for settling arrears identified across ministries, offices and other public bodies. In a parallel move, the Ministry of Finance of the Madhesh Province government has approved and implemented the Madhesh Province Audit Clearance Procedure, with both measures presented as part of a broader effort to strengthen financial accountability in the province.

A Cabinet-approved framework for settling arrears

At the heart of the announcement is the Madhesh Province Arrears Settlement Procedure, 2026. The procedure received the endorsement of the provincial Cabinet and rests on the legal foundation of the Administrative Procedure Act, 2018, the law under which it has been framed. With that backing, it establishes a defined mechanism for how arrears identified within government bodies are to be settled and how dues owed to the public purse are to be recovered. Its coverage spans the provincial administration, extending to ministries, offices and other public bodies where outstanding arrears have been identified.

The main elements of the newly introduced procedure can be summarized as follows:

  • Cabinet approval: The procedure was formally endorsed by the provincial Cabinet of Madhesh Province.
  • Legal basis: It has been framed under the Administrative Procedure Act, 2018.
  • Wide coverage: It applies to arrears identified across ministries, offices and other public bodies.
  • Twin objectives: It is designed both to settle outstanding government arrears and to recover public dues.

The beruju dimension

The framework deals with what is known in Nepal's public financial administration as beruju, the term used for government arrears. In reporting on the announcement, the measure has been described as a new beruju waiver procedure implemented to maintain financial governance in Madhesh Province. Arrears of this kind arise when dues owed to the government remain unrecovered and when pending items in government accounts remain unsettled. Such outstanding amounts sit on the books of the ministries, offices and public bodies where they originated, and the procedure introduced by the province government is intended to provide a uniform path for clearing them and for bringing the recovery of public dues under a defined process.

Audit clearance procedure rolled out alongside

Together with the arrears settlement framework, the Ministry of Finance of the Madhesh Province government has approved and implemented the Madhesh Province Audit Clearance Procedure. The Ministry of Finance is the provincial body responsible for financial administration, and its decision to approve and implement the procedure places a second formal instrument alongside the arrears framework.

The two procedures are closely linked in purpose. While the Madhesh Province Arrears Settlement Procedure, 2026 focuses on settling outstanding arrears and recovering public dues, the Audit Clearance Procedure, as its title indicates, concerns the clearance of audit matters within the province's public bodies. Both measures have been formally approved and brought into implementation by the provincial authorities, and both form part of the same announced package aimed at strengthening financial accountability in Madhesh Province.

Push for stronger financial governance in Madhesh

The provincial government has framed the new procedures as steps toward stronger financial accountability. In coverage of the announcement, the arrears settlement framework has been characterized as a procedure implemented to maintain financial governance in Madhesh Province. The stated objectives are twofold: settling arrears that have remained outstanding across the provincial administration, and recovering public dues that are owed to the government. According to RatoPati, the new beruju waiver procedure has been implemented to maintain financial governance in the province.

The significance of the measures lies in what they are designed to change. Recovered public dues flow back to the provincial exchequer, while settled arrears leave government accounts clearer and more up to date. Because the Arrears Settlement Procedure, 2026 covers ministries, offices and other public bodies, its reach extends across the provincial administration rather than being confined to any single department. The Ministry of Finance's simultaneous implementation of the Audit Clearance Procedure indicates that the province intends to pursue arrears settlement and audit clearance as complementary tracks within the same governance agenda.

Taken together, the two procedures represent the Madhesh Province Government's latest formal steps in the management of public finances at the provincial level. The Arrears Settlement Procedure, 2026 provides the mechanism for settling arrears and recovering dues, while the Audit Clearance Procedure addresses audit clearance. Both were approved with the stated aim of strengthening financial accountability, and both now form part of the framework under which Madhesh Province's public bodies are expected to settle their outstanding arrears and maintain financial governance.