President Ram Chandra Paudel authenticated the Citizenship Amendment Bill on Wednesday to amend the Citizenship Act.

The decision has cleared the way to provide citizenship for around 400,000 people who are waiting for Citizenship by Descent. The newly registered bill has paved way for their eligibility to receive citizenship of Nepal and will no longer be deprived of their constitutional rights and remain stateless.

Similarly, the provision states that if a foreign woman who is married to a Nepali citizen wants to adopt Nepali citizenship, she can become a naturalised citizen if she has been married for seven years and has continuously resided in Nepal during the period.

The government, on May 26, had requested President Paudel to certify the bill, which was repeatedly ignored by former President Bidya Devi Bhandari.

The bill had remained stalled for a long time due to controversy and opposition some several political parties.