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Indian Stamp Act, 1899

1899 · Parliament of India · 78 sections

A fiscal statute levying stamp duty on instruments; unstamped or insufficiently stamped instruments are inadmissible in evidence until duty and penalty are paid. State amendments and state Stamp Acts (e.g. Maharashtra) frequently govern.

Most-invoked sections
Stamp Act · 3

Instruments chargeable with duty

Every instrument mentioned in Schedule I executed in India, or executed outside and relating to property in India, is chargeable with the duty indicated.

Stamp Act · 17

Instruments executed in India

All instruments chargeable with duty and executed in India shall be stamped before or at the time of execution.

Stamp Act · 33

Examination and impounding of instruments

Every person having authority to receive evidence, and every public officer, shall impound an instrument that appears not duly stamped.

Stamp Act · 35

Instruments not duly stamped inadmissible in evidence

No instrument chargeable with duty shall be admitted in evidence for any purpose, or acted upon, unless duly stamped — subject to payment of the deficit duty and penalty.

Stamp Act · 36

Admission of instrument where not to be questioned

Once an instrument has been admitted in evidence, its admission shall not be called in question at any stage of the same suit on the ground that it was not duly stamped.

The text shown is a working summary used inside Nyaya for grounding and UI preview. For verbatim reproduction, refer to the bare Act published on indiacode.nic.in.