Contracts · Provision
The contract stays valid. A court will not look at it until the duty and the penalty are paid. (Section 35, Indian Stamp Act, 1899.) In force since 1 July 1899.
Quick Statutory Answer
Under Section 35 of the Indian Stamp Act 1899, an unstamped or insufficiently stamped agreement is inadmissible in evidence before any court or arbitrator, and cannot be acted upon or registered. While the underlying contract is not void, enforcing it requires paying the deficient stamp duty along with a statutory penalty of up to 10 times the shortfall. Non-stamping is a curable evidentiary defect as confirmed by the Supreme Court in the 2023 Seven-Judge Bench ruling.
| State / Union Territory | Governing Stamp Legislation | Standard Agreement / NDA Stamp Duty | Max Curing Penalty (s.35) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maharashtra | Maharashtra Stamp Act, 1958 (Art. 5(h)) | ₹100 to ₹500 (e-stamp / physical) | Up to 10× deficient duty (2% p.m. under state law) |
| Karnataka | Karnataka Stamp Act, 1957 (Art. 5(j)) | ₹200 to ₹500 | Up to 10× deficient duty |
| Delhi (NCT) | Indian Stamp (Delhi Amendment) Act (Art. 5(c)) | ₹50 to ₹100 | Up to 10× deficient duty |
| Tamil Nadu | Indian Stamp (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act | ₹20 to ₹100 | Up to 10× deficient duty |
| Uttar Pradesh | Indian Stamp (UP Amendment) Act (Art. 5(c)) | ₹100 | Up to 10× deficient duty |
| Gujarat | Gujarat Stamp Act, 1958 (Art. 5(h)) | ₹300 | Up to 10× deficient duty |
| West Bengal | Indian Stamp (West Bengal Amendment) Act | ₹50 to ₹100 | Up to 10× deficient duty |
| Telangana & Andhra Pradesh | Indian Stamp (Telangana/AP Amendment) Act | ₹100 | Up to 10× deficient duty |
| Haryana | Indian Stamp (Haryana Amendment) Act | ₹100 | Up to 10× deficient duty |
Up to 10× the deficient duty. Payable with the shortfall itself, which is why stamping at execution is far cheaper.
The agreement is valid as a contract, but section 35 of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 prevents a court from admitting it in evidence or acting upon it until the duty is paid. It is valid and unusable at the same time.
Yes. The proviso to section 35 allows admission on payment of the deficient duty and a penalty of up to ten times the shortfall. Section 17 contemplates stamping before or at execution, which is considerably cheaper.
No. A seven-judge bench of the Supreme Court held in December 2023 that non-stamping is a curable defect making the agreement inadmissible rather than void or unenforceable, departing from the earlier position in N.N. Global.
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