Using Government Stamp Known to Have Been Before Used
Section 184 punishes fraudulently, or with intent to cause loss to the Government, using for any
purpose a Government revenue stamp which the person knows to have been used before, with
imprisonment of either description up to two years, or fine, or both.
Please note: This page reflects our understanding of the law as of the date it was
last reviewed. Parliament, the State Legislatures, and the courts continue to amend and interpret
this law, and this page may not yet reflect the most recent change. Please verify the current text
of the law independently, and consult a licensed advocate for advice on your own matter, before
relying on this page.
Corresponding Provision Under Prior Law
Verified against the National Crime Records Bureau's official BNS–IPC concordance (Sankalan
Portal), which maps Section 184 to old IPC Section 262, and cross-checked directly against the bare
text of both Acts, found to be word-for-word identical.
BNS section
IPC, 1860 equivalent
Category
184
262
Exact
Quick Reference
Per the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023: punishable with imprisonment for 2 years, or fine, or both — cognizable, bailable, and triable by any Magistrate. Not compoundable: Section 184 appears in neither compounding table of Section 359 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023. In the First Schedule, “any Magistrate” does not include Executive Magistrates (Explanatory Note (2)).
Statutory Text (Verbatim)
Whoever, fraudulently or with intent to cause loss to the Government, uses for any purpose a stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, which he knows to have been before used, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.
Source: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act No. 45 of 2023), as published in the Gazette of India Extraordinary.
Explanation & Illustration (Lexovia's Commentary — Not Statutory Text)
Using a Government stamp known to have been used before
Explanation (Lexovia's Commentary)
This section is the companion offence to Section 183: while Section 183 targets the act of
detaching or effacing a used stamp to make it reusable, Section 184 targets the downstream act of
actually using such a previously-used stamp again, knowing it to have already served its purpose,
with fraudulent intent or intent to cause loss to the Government.
Illustration (Lexovia's Own Example)
A person affixes a revenue stamp, already known to have been peeled off an earlier document, onto
a fresh agreement to avoid paying stamp duty afresh. This falls within Section 184.
Section 183 (Effacing writing from substance bearing Government stamp, or removing from document a
stamp used for it, with intent to cause loss to Government); Section 185 (Erasure of mark denoting
that stamp has been used). (Shown as plain references for now; once the site exists these become
direct links.)
FAQs
Does this section require knowledge that the stamp was previously used?
Yes. The person must know the stamp to have been used before, and must act fraudulently or with
intent to cause loss to the Government.
What is the maximum punishment under this section?
Imprisonment of either description up to two years, or fine, or both.
Has this provision changed from the old law?
No. It is word-for-word identical to old IPC Section 262.
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