COURT FEES ACT, 1870
For the Statement of Objects and Reasons, see Gazette of India. 1869, Part V.P. 57, and for proceedings in Council, see ibid, 1869, Supplement, pages 1179 and 1452 ibid, 1870, Supplement, pages 52, 378, 421 and 434.
For statement of Objects and Reasons see Gazette of India Part v. Page 57, For proceeding in Council, see ibid Supplement pages 1179 and 1452, ibid 1870, Supplement pages 52, 378 and 421.
This Act may be called the Court-Fees Act, 1870. It extends to [the whole of India] except [territories which immediately before the 1st November, 1956, where comprised in Part B States];
And it shall come into force on the first day of April, 1870.
In this Act the 'Appropriate Government' means in relation to fees or stamps relating to documents presented] or to be presented before any officer serving under the Central Government, that Government, and in relation to any other fees or stamps, the [State government].
The fees payable for the time being to the clerks and officers (other than the sheriffs and attorneys) of [High Courts other than those of Kerala, Mysore and Rajasthan].
or chargeable in each of such Courts under No. 11 of first, and Nos. 7, 12, 14, [[**] 20 and 21 of the second schedule to this Act annexed;
Levy of fees in Presidency Small Cause Courts. - And the fees for the time being chargeable in the Courts of Small Causes at the Presidency towns and several offices, shall be collected in manner hereinafter appearing.
[in High Court of Punjab and Haryana in its extraordinary jurisdiction]. - No document of any of the kinds specified in the first or second schedule to this Act annexed, as chargeable with fees, shall be filed, exhibited or recorded in, or shall be received or furnished by [the High Court of Punjab and Haryana] in any case coming before such Court in the exercise of its extraordinary original civil jurisdiction;
or in the exercise of its extraordinary criminal jurisdiction;
In their appellate jurisdiction.
or in the exercise of its jurisdiction as regards appeals from the [judgments (other than judgments passed in the exercise of the ordinary original civil jurisdiction of the Court) of one] or more Judges of the said Court or of a division Court;
or in the exercise of its jurisdiction as regards appeals from the Courts subject to its superintendence;
As cour
When any difference arises between the officer whose duty it is to see that any fee is paid under this chapter and any suitor or attorney, as to the necessity of paying a fee or the amount thereof, the question shall, when the difference arises in any of the said High Courts, be referred to the taxing officer, whose decision thereon shall be final, except when the question is, in his opinion, one of general importance, in which case he shall refer it to the final decision of the Chief Justice of such High Court or of, such Judge of the High Court as the Cheif Justice shall appoint either generally or specially in this behalf.
When any such difference arises in any of the said Courts of Small Causes, the question shall be referred to the Clerk of the Court, whose decision thereon shall be final, except when the question is, in his opinion, one of general importance, in which case he shall refer it to the final decision of the first Judge such Cou
Except in the Courts herein before mentioned no document of any of the kinds specified as chargeable in the first or second schedule to this Act annexed shall be filed, exhibited or recorded in any Court of Justice or shall be received or furnished by any public officer, unless in respect of such document there be paid a fee of an amount not less than that indicated by either of the said schedules as the proper fee for such document.
The amount of fee payable under this Act in the suits As to [next hereinafter mentioned shall be computed as follows]:-
for money
(i) In suit for money (including suits for damages or compensation, or arrears of maintenance of annuities, or of other sums payable periodically - according to the amount claimed;
(ii) [(a) for maintenance and annuities. - In suits for maintenance annuities or other sums payable periodically-according to the value of the subject-matter of the suit, and such value shall be deemed to be ten times the amount claimed to be payable for one year;]
[(b) In suits for reduction or enhancement of maintenance and annuities or other sums payable periodically according to the value of the subject matter of the suit and such value shall be deemed to be ten times the amount sought to the reduced or enhanced for one year];
(iii) for other movable
The amount of fee payable under this Act on a memorandum of appeal against an order relating to compensation under any Act for the time being in force for the acquisition of land for public purposes shall be computed according to the difference between the amount awarded and the amount claimed by the appellant :
[Provided that the fixed court fee of one hundred rupees shall be payable on the memorandum of appeal or cross-objections before the High Court arising under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 or any other law for the time being in force for acquisition of land for public purposes.]
If the Court sees reason to think that the annual net profits or the market value of any such land, house or garden as is mentioned in section 7, paragraphs 5 and 6, have or has been wrongly estimated, the Court may, for the purpose of computing the fees payable in any suit therein mentioned, issue commission to any proper person directing him to make such local or other investigation as may be necessary, and report thereon to the Court.
(i) If in the result of any such investigation the Court finds that the net profits or market value have or has been wrongly estimated, the Court, if the estimation has been excessive, may, in its discretion, refund the excess paid as such fee; but, if the estimation has been insufficient, the Court shall require the plaintiff to pay so much additional fee as would have been payable had the said market-value or net profits been rightly estimated.
(ii) In any such case the suit shall be stayed until the additional fee is paid. If the additional fee is not paid within such time as the Court shall fix, the suit shall be dismissed.
[(iii) -]
In suits for mesne profits or for immoveable property and mesne profits or for an account, if the profits or amount decreed are or is in excess of the profits claimed or the amount at which the plaintiff valued the relief sought, the decree shall not be [executed ] until the difference between the fee actually paid and the fee which would have been payable had the suit comprised the whole of the profits or amount so decreed shall have been paid to the proper officer.
When the amount of mesne profits is left to be ascertained in the course of the execution of the decree, if the profits so ascertained exceed the profits claimed, the further execution of the decree shall be stayed until the difference between the fee actually paid and the fee which would have been payable had the suit comprised the whole of the profits so ascertained is paid. If the additional fee is not paid within such time as the Court shall fix, the suit shall be dismissed.
(i) Every question relating to valuation for the purpose of determining the amount of any fee chargeable under this chapter on a plaint or memorandum of appeal shall be decided by the Court in which such plaint or memorandum, as the case may be, is filed, and such decision shall be final as between the parties to the suit.
(ii) But whenever any such suit comes before a Court of appeal, reference or revision, if such Court considers that the said question has been wrongly decided to the detriment of the revenue, it shall required the party by whom such fee has been paid to pay so much additional fee as would have been payable had the question been rightly decided, and the provisions of section 10, paragraph (ii) shall apply.
If an appeal or plaint, which has been rejected by the lower Court on any of the grounds mentioned in the Code of Civil Procedure, is ordered to be received, or if a suit is remanded in appeal, on any of the grounds mentioned in [section 351] of the same Code for a second decision by the lower Court, the Appellate Court shall grant to the appellant a certificate, authorising him to receive back from the Collector the full amount of fee paid on the memorandum of appeal;
Provided that if, in the case of a remand in appeal the order of remand shall not cover the whole of the subject matter of the suit, the certificate so granted shall not authorise the appellant to receive back more than so much fee as would have been originally payable on the part or parts of such subject-matter in respect whereof the suit has been remanded.
Where an application for a review of judgment is presented on or after the ninetieth day from the date of decree, the Court, unless the delay was caused by the applicant's laches, may, in its discretion, grant him a certificate authorising him to receive back from the Collector so much of the fee paid or the application as exceeds the fee which would have been payable had it been presented before such date.
Where an application for a review of judgment is admitted, and where, on the re-hearing,. the court reverses or modifies its former decision on the ground of mistake in law or fact, the applicant shall be entitled to a certificate from the Court authorizing him to receive back from the Collector so much of the fee paid on the [application] as exceeds the fee payable on any other application to such Court under the second schedule to this Act, No. 1, clause (b) or clause (d).
But nothing in the former part of this section shall entitle the applicant to such certificate where the reversal or modification is due, wholly or in part, to fresh evidence which might have been produced at the original hearing.
Repealed by the Code of Civil Procedure 1908 (V of 1908).
Where a suit embraces two or more distinct subjects, the plaint or memorandum of appeal shall be chargeable with the aggregate amount of the fees to which the plaints or memoranda of appeal in suits embracing separately each of such subjects would be liable under this Act.
Nothing in the former part of this section shall be deemed to affect the power conferred by the Code of Civil Procedure, section 9.
When the first or only examination of a person who complains of the offence of wrongful confinement or wrongful restraint, or of any offence other than an offence for which police-officers may arrest without a warrant, and who has not already presented a petition on which a fee has been levied under this Act, is reduced to writing under the provisions of the [Code of Criminal Procedure (V of 1898)], the complaint shall pay a fee of [one rupee and twenty-five Naye Paise] unless the Court thinks fit to remit such payment.
Nothing contained in this Act shall render the following documents chargeable with any fee:-
(i) Power of attorney to institute or defend a suit when executed [by a member of any of the Armed Forces of the Union] not in civil employment.
[(ii) -]
(iii) Written statements called for by the Court after the first hearing of a suit.
[iv) -]
(v) Plaints in suits tried by Village Munsiffs in the Presidency of Fort St. George.
(vi) Plaints and processes in suits before District Panchayats in the same presidency.
(vii) Plaints in suits before Collectors under Madras Regulation, XII of 1816.
(viii) Probate of a will, letters of administration, and, save as regards debts and securities, a certificate under Bombay Regulation VIII of 1827 where the amount or value of the property in respect of which the pr
.
Where any person on applying for a probate of a will or letters of administration has estimated the property of the deceased to be of greater value than the same has afterwards proved to be, and has consequently paid too high a court-fee thereon, if within six months after the true value of the property has been ascertained, such person produces the probate or letters to the Chief Controlling Revenue Authority [(for the local area) in which the probate or letters has or have been granted.]
and delivers to such Authority a particular inventory and valuation of the property of the deceased, verified by affidavit or affirmation,
and if such Authority is satisfied that a grater fee was paid on the probate or letters than the law required, the said Authority may-
(a) cancel the stamp on the probate or letter if such stamp has not already been cancelled;
(b) substitute another stamp for
Whenever it is proved to the satisfaction of such authority that an executor or administrator has paid debts due from the deceased to such an amount as, being deducted out of the amount or value of the estate, reduces the same to a sum which, if it had been the whole gross amount or value of the estate, would have occasioned a less court-fee to be paid on the probate or letters of administration granted in respect of such estate than has been actually paid thereon under this Act,
such authority may return the difference, provided the same be claimed within three years after the date of such probate or letters.
But when, by reason of any legal proceeding, the debts due from the deceased have not been ascertained and paid, or his effects have not been recovered and made available, and in consequence thereof the executor or administrator is prevented from claiming the return of such difference within the said term of three yea
Whenever [-] a grant of probate or letters of administration has been or is made in respect of the whole of the property belonging to an estate, and the full fee chargeable under this Act has been, or is, paid thereon, no fee shall be chargeable under the same Act when a like grant is made in respect of whole or any part of the same property belonging to the same estate.
Whenever such a grant has been or is made in respect of any property forming part of an estate, the amount of fees then actually paid under this Act shall be deducted when a like grant is made in respect of property belonging to the same estate, identical with or including the property to which the former grant relates.
The probate of the will or the letters of administration of the effects of any person deceased heretofore or hereafter granted shall be deemed valid and available by his executors or administrators for recovering, transferring or assigning any moveable or immoveable property whereof or whereto the deceased was possessed or entitled, either wholly or partially as a trustee, notwithstanding the amount or value of such property is not included in the amount or value of the estate in respect of which a court-fee was paid on such probate or letters of administration.
Where any person on applying for probate or letters of administration has estimated the estate of the deceased to be of less value than the same has afterwards proved to be, and has in consequence paid too low a court-fee thereon, the Chief Controlling Revenue Authority [(for the local area) in which the probate or letters has or have been granted may, on the value of the estate of the deceased being verified by affidavit or affirmation, cause the probate or letters of administration to be duly stamped on payment of the full court-fee which ought to have been originally paid thereon in respect of such value and of the further penalty, if the probate or letters is or are produced within one year from the date of the grant, of five times, or, if it or they is or are produced after one year from such date, of twenty times, such proper court- fee, without any deduction of the court-fee originally paid on such probate or letters;]
Provided that, if t
In case of letters of administration on which too low a court-fee has been paid at first, the said Authority shall not cause the same to be duly stamped in manner aforesaid until the administrator has given such security to the court by which the letters of administration have been granted as ought by law to have been given on the granting thereof in case the full value of the estate of the deceased had been then ascertained.
Where too low a court fee has been paid on any probate or letters of administration in consequence of any mistake, or of its not being known at the time that some particular part of the estate belonged to the deceased, if any executor or administrator acting under such probate or letters does not within six months [- -] after the discovery of the mistake or of any effects not known at the time to have belonged to the deceased, apply to the said Authority and pay what is wanting to make up the court-fee which ought to have been paid at first on such probate or letters, he shall forfeit the sum of one thousand rupees and also a further sum at the rate of ten per cent, on the amount of the sum wanting to make up the proper court-fee.
(1) Where an application for probate for probate or letters of ministration is made to any Court other than High Court, the Court shall cause notice of the application to be given to the Collector.
(2) Where such an application as aforesaid is made to a High Court, the High Court shall cause notice of the application to be given to the Chief Controlling Revenue-Authority [(for the local area) in which the High Court is situated.]
(3) The Collector within the local limits of whose revenue-jurisdiction the property of the deceased or any part thereof, is, may at any time inspect or cause to be inspected, and take or cause to be taken copies of, the record of any case in which application for probate or letters of administration has been made; and if on such inspection or otherwise, he is of opinion that the petitioner has under-estimated the value of the property of the deceased, the Collector may, if he thinks fit, require
(1) No order entitling the petitioner to the grant of probate or letters of administration shall be made upon an application for such grant until the petitioner has filed in the Court a valuation of the property in the form set forth in the third schedule, and the Court is satisfied that the fee mentioned in No. 11 of the first schedule has been paid on such valuation.
(2) The grant of probate or letters of administration shall not be delayed by reason of any motion made by the Collector under section 19-H, sub-section (4).
(1) Any excess fee found to be payable on any inquiry held under section 19- H, sub-section (6), and any penalty or forfeiture under section 19-G may, on the certificate of the Chief Controlling Revenue Authority be recovered from the executor or administrator as if it were an arrear of land revenue by any Collector. [-]
(2) The Chief Controlling Revenue Authority may remit the whole or any part of any such penalty or forfeiture as aforesaid, or any part of any penalty under section 19-E or of any Court-fee under section 19-E in excess of the full Court-fee which ought to have been paid.
Nothing in section 6 or section 28 shall apply to probates or letters of administration.]
The High Court shall, as soon as may be, make rules as to the following matters:-
(i) The fees chargeable for serving and executing processes issued by such Court in its appellate jurisdiction, and by the order Civil [(-)] Courts established within the local limits of such jurisdiction;
(ii) the fees chargeable for serving and executing processes issued by the Criminal Courts established within such limits in the case of offences other than offences for which police officers may arrest without a warrant;
(iii) the remuneration of the peons and all other persons employed by leave of a Court in the service or execution of processes.
The High Court may from time to time alter and add to the rules so made.
Confirmation and publication of rules. - All such rules, alterations and additions shall, after being confirmed by the [State] Government [-] be published in t
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the preceding section or in the rules made there under, no fees shall be charged for serving and executing processes on behalf of [(a)] the prosecution in any criminal proceedings taken on information presented or complaint made by a public Officer acting in his official capacity [and (b) a liquidator or an arbitrator appointed under the provisions of the Co-operative Societies Act, 1912.]
(2) The [State] Government may, by notification, determine what persons shall be deemed to be public officers for the purpose of the preceding sub-section.]
A table in the English and Vernacular languages showing the fees chargeable for such service and execution, shall be exposed to view in a conspicuous part of each Court.
Subject to the rules to be made by the High Court and approved by the [State] Government, [-] every District Judge and every Magistrate of a District shall fix and may from time to time alter, the number of peons necessary to be employed for the service and execution of processes issued out of his Court and each of the Courts subordinate thereto.
Number of Peon in Moffusil Small Causes Court. - And for the purposes of this section, every Court of Small Causes established under Act No. XI of 1865 [to consolidate and amend the law relating to Court of Small Causes beyond the local limits of the ordinary original civil jurisdiction of the High Courts of judicature] shall be deemed to be subordinate to the Court of the District Judge.
Number of peons in Revenue Court)].
(Process served under this Chapter to be held to be process within meaning of Code of Civil Procedure.]
All fees referred to in section 3 or chargeable under this Act shall be collected by stamps.
[Provided that where the Treasury Officer or the Assistant Treasury Officer, as the case may be, by a notice in writing affixed outside his office declares that court-fee stamps of a denomination or denominations specified in the notice are not available for sale the court fee of such denomination or denominations may be paid by depositing an equivalent amount in cash in that treasury or sub- treasury through a challan upon which the treasury officer or the Assistant Treasury Officer as the case may be, shall issue a certificate in the following form and such a certificate may be used for the purposes of this Act and the rules made thereunder as if it were a stamp duty issued under this Act by the State Government for an equivalent amount.]
Form of certificate.
Note. - Certificate that an amount of Rs. ________
The stamps used to denote any fees chargeable under this Act shall be impressed or adhesive or partly impressed and partly adhesive as the [(Appropriate Government] may, by notification in the [(Official Gazette), from lime to time direct.]
The [(Appropriate Government) may, from time to time, make rules regulating] -
(a) the supply of stamps to be used under this Act;
(b) the number of stamps to be used for denoting any fee chargeable under this Act;
(c) the renewal of damaged or spoiled stamps; and
(d) the keeping accounts of all stamps used under this Act;
Provided that in the case of stamps used under section 3 in a High Court such rules shall be made with the concurrence of the Chief Justice of such Court.
All such rules shall be published in the [(Official Gazette) and shall thereupon have the force of law.]
No document which ought to bear a stamp under this Act shall be of any validity, unless and until it is properly stamped.
But, if any such document is through mistake or inadvertence received, filed or used in any Court or office without being properly stamped, the presiding Judge or the head of the Office, as the case may be or, in the case of a High Court, any Judge of such Court may, if he think fit, order that such document be stamped as he may direct, and, on such document being stamped accordingly, the same and every proceeding relative thereto shall be as valid as if it had been properly stamped in the first instance.
Where any such document is amended in order merely to correct a mistake and to make it conform to the original intention of the parties, it shall not be necessary to impose fresh stamp.
No document requiring a stamp under this Act shall be filed or acted upon in any proceeding in any Court or office until the stamp has been cancelled.
Such officer as the Court or the head of the office may from time to time appoint shall, on receiving any such document forthwith effect such cancellation by punching out the figure-head so as to leave the amount designated on the stamp untouched, and the part removed by punching shall be burnt or otherwise destroyed.
(Repayment of fees paid on applications to criminal courts.)[-].
Amendment of Act VIII of 1859 and Act IX of 1869.)[-].
Whenever the filing or exhibition in a Criminal Court of a document in respect of which the proper fee has not been paid is, in the opinion of the presiding Judge, necessary to prevent a failure of justice, nothing contained in section 4 or section 6 shall be deemed to prohibit such filing or exhibition.
(1) The [Appropriate Government] may from time to time make rules for regulating the sale of stamps to be used under this Act, the person by whom alone such sale is to be conducted, and the duties and remuneration of such persons.
(2) All such rules shall be published in the [Official Gazette] and shall thereupon have the force of law.
(3) Any person appointed to sell stamps who disobeys any rules made under this section, and any person not so appointed who sells or offers for sale any stamp shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both].
The [Appropriate Government] may, from time to time by notification in the [Official Gazette] reduce or remit in the whole or in any part of [the territories under its administration] all or any of the fees mentioned in the first and second schedules to this Act annexed, and may in like manner cancel or vary such order.
Nothing in Chapters II and V of the Act applies to the commission payable to the Accountant-General of the High Court at Fort William, or to the fees which any officer of a High Court is allowed to receive in addition to a fixed salary.
Number
Proper fee
1
2
3
[1. Plaint-written statement pleading, a off or counter-claim or memorandum of appeal (not otherwise provided for in this Act) or of cross- objection presented to any Civil or Revenue Court except those mentioned in Section 3]
When the amount or value of the subject-matter in dispute does not exceed five rupees
Fifty naye Paise
When such amount or value exceeds five rupees - for every five rupees or part thereof, in excess of five rupees, up to one hundred rupees
Fifty naye Paise
When such amount, or value exceeds one hundred rupees, but does not exceed five hundred rupees, for every ten rupees or part
Schedule I of the Court Fees Act, 1870, prescribes the rules for calculating court fees on various suits, applications, appeals, and other proceedings based on their valuation or subject matter. It provides the framework for determining the amount payable in different types of cases, ensuring uniformity and clarity in fee assessment across courts in India.
Schedule I specifies the ad valorem court fees payable on suits, appeals, and proceedings, primarily based on the value of the subject matter involved. It includes articles that detail fees for suits for recovery, declaration, possession, partition, cancellation of documents, and appeals, among others. The section also delineates the method of valuation and the applicable fee rates.
Note: Many of these points are supported by case law, amendments, and judicial interpretations as reflected in the sources. The emphasis remains on the importance of correct valuation, proper fee payment, and adherence to procedural rules as essential pillars of the civil justice system under Schedule I of the Court Fees Act, 1870.
Number
Proper fee
1
2
3
1. Application or Petition.
(a) When presented to any officer of the Customs or Excise Department or to any Magistrate by any person having dealings with the government, and when the subject-matter of such application relates exclusively to those dealings; when presented to any officer of land- revenue by any person holding temporarily-settled land under direct engagement with Government, and when the subject-matter of the application or petition relates exclusively to such engagement.
*Forty naya Paise.
or when presented to any Municipal Commissioner under any Act for the time being in force for the conservancy or improvement of any place, if the application or petition
Schedule II of the Court Fees Act, 1870, provides the prescribed court fee structure for various suits, petitions, and applications in civil courts. It categorizes suits and proceedings based on their nature and the relief sought, distinguishing between fixed and ad valorem fees, and specifies the applicable fee for each type of case. The Schedule aims to standardize the fee payable, ensuring clarity and uniformity across jurisdictions.
Schedule II of the Court Fees Act, 1870, enumerates the different types of suits, petitions, and applications, along with the respective court fees payable. It includes provisions for suits for declaration, partition, possession, specific performance, and other reliefs. It also specifies the fee for appeals, cross-objections, and miscellaneous proceedings, often differentiating between fixed fees and ad valorem fees based on the valuation or nature of the suit.
Schedule II applies to all civil suits, petitions, and applications filed in courts where the Court Fees Act, 1870, is applicable. It governs the amount payable at the time of filing and during appeals or miscellaneous proceedings. Its scope extends to suits for declaration, partition, possession, specific performance, and other civil reliefs, including proceedings under special statutes, provided they are not explicitly exempted.
There is no direct punishment prescribed under Schedule II itself for non-payment or underpayment of court fees. However, failure to pay the requisite fee can lead to rejection of the plaint or application, or the suit being dismissed for non-compliance. Additionally, provisions under the Court Fees Act and the Civil Procedure Code empower courts to dismiss or reject suits and applications if proper fees are not paid.
This concise legal commentary underscores the importance of correctly classifying suits and applications under Schedule II for proper fee payment, ensuring adherence to statutory provisions and avoiding procedural dismissals or penalties.
Form of valuation (to be used with such modifications, if any, as may be necessary)
In the Court of
Re : Probate of the Will of
the Property and credits of
(or administration of ),
deceased,
I, _____________________________________________________ solemnly affirm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
make oath and say that I am the executor (or one of the executors
or one of the next-of-kin) of__________________deceased, and that I have truly set forth in Annexure A to this affidavit all the property and credits of which the above-named deceased died possessed or was entitled to at the time of his death, and which have come, or are likely to come, to my hands.
2. I further say that I have also truly s
Cash in the house and the banks, household goods, wearing-apparel, books, plate, jewels, etc.
Rs.
P.
(State estimated value according to best of Executor's Administrator's belief).
Property in Government securities transferable at the Public Debt office.
(State description and value at the price of the day; also the interest separately, calculating it to the time of making the application).
Immovable property consisting of
(State description, giving, in the case of houses the assessed value, if any and the
Amount of debts, due and owing from the deceased, payable by law out of the estate.
Rs.
np.
Amount of funeral expenses
Amount of mortgage encumbrances
Property held in trust not beneficially or with general power to confer a beneficial interest.
Other property not subject to duty.
___________________
Total
___________________
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