A policy-makers hub for the Kingdom of Bhutan. 29 statutes grouped by topic, the regulatory bodies that administer them, recent policy analyses, and the frameworks they operate within.
Foundational laws of the Kingdom — what they say, when they were enacted, and where to read the official text.
The 2008 founding document. Codified constitutional monarchy, parliamentary democracy, fundamental rights, and Gross National Happiness as a guiding policy.
Bhutan's first codified nationality law. Recognised long-term southern residents as citizens — the baseline against which the 1985 Act later required documentary proof.
Tightened naturalisation requirements and lengthened residence thresholds. A precursor to the much stricter 1985 framework.
The decisive nationality law. Required documentation of pre-1958 residence and was subsequently used to strip citizenship from tens of thousands of Lhotshampa.
Codified criminal offences, classifications, sentencing principles, and defences. Replaced the patchwork of pre-2004 criminal law with a single document.
Procedural rules — how cases are filed, prosecuted, appealed, and decided. Pairs with the Penal Code on the criminal side.
Sedition, treason, and offences against the state. Drafted in the aftermath of the 1990–91 protests in southern Bhutan and used in the prosecution of Lhotshampa political prisoners.
The first codified family law of Bhutan. Set rules for monogamy, divorce, child custody, and inheritance — replacing customary practice with a uniform code.
The framework for NGOs and CSOs in Bhutan. Distinguishes Public Benefit and Mutual Benefit Organisations and creates the CSO Authority as the registrar/regulator.
Bhutan’s primary child-rights legislation, aligned with the UN CRC. Establishes Child Welfare Officers and a restorative juvenile-justice approach.
Defined domestic violence in Bhutanese law for the first time and established protection orders, victim support, and prosecution pathways.
Wages, working hours, occupational safety, dispute resolution, and foreign-worker rules — the foundation of formal employment law in Bhutan.
Bhutan's foundational electoral law. Governs two-round elections, party registration, candidate eligibility, and the operations of the Election Commission of Bhutan.
Devolved administrative authority to dzongkhags, gewogs, and thromdes. The constitutional basis for the elected local-government system that began in 2011.
Statutory framework for Bhutan’s civil service under the Royal Civil Service Commission. Prescribes recruitment via the BCSE, the Position Classification System, the BCS code of conduct, and retirement at 60.
Replaced the 2006 Anti-Corruption Act and gave the Anti-Corruption Commission expanded investigative powers. Underpins Bhutan's strong CPI ranking.
Created the National Disaster Management Authority and the dzongkhag-level risk-reduction architecture, drafted in the wake of the 2009 Mongar and 2011 Sikkim earthquakes.
Governs the budget process, the Consolidated Fund, public debt limits, government procurement, and audit by the Royal Audit Authority. Amended in 2012.
Re-established the RMA as an autonomous central bank. Statutory mandate covers price stability, currency issuance, banking regulation, and the ngultrum-rupee peg.
Established Bhutan's formal AML/CFT regime, upgraded the Financial Intelligence Unit at the RMA, and aligned the country with FATF recommendations under Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering review.
Modernised corporate statute replacing the Companies Act 2000. Codified director duties, shareholder rights, and the GNH-aligned governance principles administered by the Corporate Regulatory Authority.
Replaced the 1979 Land Act. Created the National Land Commission, codified registration through the cadastral resurvey, and limited per-household holdings to 25 acres.
Bhutan's primary forest, wildlife, and protected-areas law. Underwrites the constitutional 60% forest-cover guarantee. Substantially amended in 2023.
Modernised the 1995 framework — strengthened community-forest provisions, updated wildlife schedules, and codified ecosystem-services payments.
Framework environmental statute that designates the National Environment Commission as the apex environmental authority and operationalises the constitutional 60% forest-cover guarantee.
Codified literary, artistic, and audiovisual copyright in Bhutan. Aligned with WIPO model provisions ahead of Bhutan’s WIPO accession.
The investment-promotion statute. Sets out tax holidays, customs concessions, and sector-specific incentives for priority industries identified in the 12th and 13th Five-Year Plans.
Telecoms, broadcasting, internet, and press — the regulatory framework for everything Bhutan legalised in 1999.
Restricted sale, production, and import of tobacco. Among the world’s strictest, with a controversial enforcement record.
The constitutional and statutory authorities that administer the laws above.
Central bank — currency, banking regulation, AML supervision, ngultrum-rupee peg.
Constitutional body investigating corruption in public office.
Constitutional auditor; reports annually to Parliament on government and SOE accounts.
Apex civil-service authority — recruitment, promotion, conduct, BCSE.
Apex environmental authority under NEPA 2007; chaired by the Prime Minister.
Producer of the census, BLSS, GNH datasets, and the Statistical Yearbook.
Operationalises the GNH Index; conducts the GNH Surveys (2010, 2015, 2022).
Detailed BhutanWiki articles on current and ongoing regulatory questions — useful starting points for citation.
The 2019 RMA notification, the AML/CFT framework, the Druk-Bitdeer JV, and the Gelephu Mindfulness City SAR digital-asset regime.
The Nu 228.46M regulatory penalty announced 17–18 April 2026 and the underlying Nu 1.46bn system-glitch case under police investigation.
Year-by-year CPI scores from 2007 to 2024; Bhutan’s consistent position as the cleanest South Asian state.
WGI scores across the six dimensions, with the political-stability and control-of-corruption strengths.
The multi-decade GIS-based update of Bhutan’s land-registration thrams, controversies, and the National Land Commission.
Bhutan’s only stock exchange, listed companies, market cap, and the regulatory environment under the RMA.
The major policy frameworks the statutes operate within.
Bhutan's development philosophy and the source of the GNH Index methodology.
The current plan period (FY 2024–25 to FY 2028–29) prioritising hydropower, GMC, and post-LDC fiscal posture.
Bhutan's constitutional 60% forest cover, NDC pledges, and carbon-negative claim.
Bhutan's December 2023 graduation from Least Developed Country status and the consequent loss of trade preferences.
The Special Administrative Region authorised by the 2024 GMC Act, applying Singaporean and ADGM laws.
The official code of dress, etiquette, and protocol enforced in dzongs and government buildings.
Need the full official text? For statutes published by the National Assembly, the canonical PDF lives at nab.gov.bt. The Office of the Attorney General also maintains a list at oag.gov.bt.
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