Cheque bounce timeline: notice, 15 days and the 30 day complaint window

In a cheque bounce case there are four clocks. Present the cheque within three months of its date. Send a written demand within 30 days of receiving the bank’s information of dishonour. Give the drawer 15 days from receipt of the notice to pay. Then file the complaint within one month after those 15 days end. A complaint filed too early is premature; one filed too late needs the court to condone the delay.

A day by day example

Numbers help. Take Rohan, a stationery wholesaler in Kanpur, who receives a ₹1,80,000 cheque from a retailer in Agra, dated 10 January 2026. These dates are an illustration to show the method, not a rule about any real case.

The method: add 30 days to the date you received the bank’s information, add 15 days to the date the notice was delivered, then add one month to the day after those 15 days. Counting conventions can differ by a day, so treat your calendar’s last day as the day before the real one and file early.

Clock 1: presenting the cheque

The Reserve Bank of India has directed banks, since 1 April 2012, not to pay a cheque presented after three months from its date. Section 138 itself refers to six months or the validity period, whichever is earlier. A post-dated cheque runs its three months from the date written on it. A cheque that is presented late comes back as stale, and that does not found a section 138 case. See the return memo guide.

Clock 2: the 30 day notice

The clock starts from your receipt of the information from the bank, not from the date the drawer’s bank returned the cheque. Keep the SMS, email or memo as evidence of when you got it. The notice must be written, must demand the cheque amount and should go to every address of the drawer by registered post or speed post, with tracking printouts kept. A notice returned “refused” or “unclaimed” from a correct address is generally treated as served unless the drawer proves otherwise. Send it within a week if you can. Day 30 is not a target.

Clock 3: the 15 days to pay

If the drawer pays the cheque amount in those 15 days, the offence is not made out and there is nothing to file. If he does not, the offence is complete when the 15 days expire. The Supreme Court in C.C. Alavi Haji v. Palapetty Muhammed (2007) also held that where a drawer claims non-receipt, he can pay within 15 days of the summons and the complaint will end. If he fails to do so, he cannot rely on non-receipt of the notice.

Clock 4: the complaint within one month

Section 142(1)(b) requires the complaint to be made within one month of the date on which the cause of action arises. That date is the day after the 15 days expire without payment. A complaint filed on day 10 of the 15 is premature and is likely to be thrown out. A complaint filed after the month is barred unless the court is satisfied that there was sufficient cause for the delay.

The complaint is a written, private complaint to a Judicial Magistrate First Class or Metropolitan Magistrate, not an FIR. Since the Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Act, 2015 (from 15 June 2015), a payee who deposited the cheque through his own account can file in the court where that account branch is situated (s.142(2)(a)). For a cheque presented otherwise than through an account, the court is where the drawer’s bank branch is (s.142(2)(b)). Later complaints against the same drawer go to the court where the first was filed (s.142A).

Condonation of delay

The proviso to section 142(1)(b) lets the court take cognizance after the month if the complainant shows sufficient cause. File a written application with the complaint and attach proof: medical records for illness, a death certificate, or the drawer’s own message asking for time with a promise to pay. Condonation is discretionary and a court can refuse it. Do not plan around it.

Several dishonours, several timelines

Each bounced cheque has its own set of clocks. A landlord with three bounced monthly rent cheques must run three timelines. If you re-present a cheque and it bounces again, the later dishonour has fresh clocks, but only if the re-presentation was within the original three months. Do not count the first bounce’s dates for the second.

Common mistakes

• Counting 30 days from the cheque date instead of from receipt of the bank’s information.
• Sending the notice at the last minute with no proof of the date of dispatch.
• Filing the complaint the very day after the notice is delivered.
• Missing the one month limit because of settlement talks.
• Filing in the drawer’s city when the payee’s account branch court was available.

Plan your own dates with the cheque bounce law certificate course. The certificate is a certificate of completion issued by Lexfolio and is not a professional qualification.

Frequently asked questions

When exactly does the 30 days start?

From the day you receive the bank’s information that the cheque was returned unpaid, usually the memo or SMS.

What if the drawer pays after the 15 days but before I file?

The offence is already complete, and you may still file. Payment after that is a ground for settlement, and the case can be compounded under s.147.

Can I file the complaint before the 15 days end?

No. A complaint made before the cause of action arises is premature.

What if I miss the one month limit?

You can apply for condonation of delay by showing sufficient cause. The court may refuse.

Can I wait and file in a different court later?

The territorial rule in s.142(2) decides the court. Choose it at the time of filing.

Quick quiz

Sources

• Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881: ss.138 (provisos (a) to (c)), 142, 142A
• Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Act, 2015 (in force 15 June 2015)
• RBI direction on three month validity of cheques
• C.C. Alavi Haji v. Palapetty Muhammed (2007); MSR Leathers v. S. Palaniappan (2013)

This page is for education and general information, not legal advice for a specific case. Law as on 7 November 2026.