Section 138 NI Act timeline

Date on the cheque Date you received the bank’s return memo Date the drawer received your notice (if known)

The rules used

1. The cheque must be presented to the bank within its validity period: three months from its date (Reserve Bank of India instructions, from 1 April 2012).
2. The payee must send a written demand notice within 30 days of receiving information from the bank that the cheque was returned unpaid (Section 138(b)).
3. The drawer has 15 days from receiving the notice to pay (Section 138(c)). If payment is not made, the cause of action arises on the day after those 15 days end.
4. The complaint must be filed within one month of the date the cause of action arises (Section 142(1)(b)). The court may take a late complaint if sufficient cause for the delay is shown (proviso to Section 142(1)(b)).

Source. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 (India Code). Periods are counted in calendar days, excluding the day from which the period runs; for the one-month period for the complaint the day the cause of action arises is excluded (Saketh India Ltd. v. India Securities Ltd., (1999) 3 SCC 1). When a deadline falls on a court holiday, check the applicable rules. This is an aid to planning, not legal advice: when the notice is treated as served can itself be disputed.

Last reviewed 10 October 2026.