Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881

[CHAPTER XVII

OF PENALTIES IN CASE OF DISHONOUR OF CERTAIN CHEQUES FOR INSUFFICIENCY OF FUNDS IN THE ACCOUNTS

Dishonour of cheque for insufficiency, etc., of funds in the account.

138. Where any cheque drawn by a person on an account maintained by him with a banker for payment of any amount of money to another person from out of that account for the discharge, in whole or in part, of any debt or other liability, is returned by the bank unpaid, either because of the amount of money standing to the credit of that account is insufficient to honour the cheque or that it exceeds the amount arranged to be paid from that account by an agreement made with that bank, such person shall be deemed to have committed an offence and shall, without prejudice to any other provision of this Act, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to [two years], or with fine which may extend to twice the amount of the cheque, or with both:

Provided that nothing contained in this section shall apply unless-

(a)	-	the cheque has been presented to the bank within a period of six months from the date on which it is drawn or within the period of its validity, whichever is earlier;
(b)	-	the payee or the holder in due course of the cheque, .... To read the full section download the app from Google Play store Latest Job Openings View all ARTICLESHIP 23 May 2026 Article Assistants Acupro Consulting Gurgaon CA Inter View Details 04 May 2026 Content Writer Intern Interactive Media Pvt Ltd. New Delhi CA Inter View Details 11 May 2026 Post office Post office Anakapalle Others View Details 02 May 2026 Experience Audit Manager AGGARWAL SAMIR & CO New Delhi CA Inter View Details 16 May 2026 Audit clerk mgirt & co Bengaluru CA Inter View Details ARTICLESHIP 27 April 2026 CA Articled Assistant GM Corporate Solutions Noida CA Final View Details 11 May 2026 CA Dropout Patron Accounting LLP Pune CA Inter View Details 19 May 2026 Article, CA & Paid Assistant Positions Aggarwal Sarawagi and Co New Delhi CA View Details Share  Facebook  Twitter  Linkedin  Reddit  Email  Whatsapp  Gmail  Pocket  Print  Pinterest  PDF  Translate Whatsapp Groups GST Income Tax CA Final CA Inter CAclubindia Login at CAclubindia CAclubindia India's largest network for finance professionals User Name Password Remember Me Forgot Password ? Alternatively, you can log in using: Login with Google Don't have an account? Register Now click here to register