No conveyance to leave without written order
Section 42 of the Customs Act, 1962 deals with no conveyance to leave without written order. The person-in-charge of a conveyance which has brought any imported goods or has loaded any export goods at a customs station shall not cause or permit the conveyance to depart from that customs station until a written order to that effect has been given by the proper officer. The Act came into force on 01 Feb 1963.
(1) The person-in-charge of a conveyance which has brought any imported goods or has loaded any export goods at a customs station shall not cause or permit the conveyance to depart from that customs station until a written order to that effect has been given by the proper officer.
(2) No such order shall be given until,--
(a) the person-in-charge of the conveyance has answered the questions put to him under section 38;
(b) the provisions of section 41 have been complied with;
(c) the shipping bills or bills of export, the bills of transhipment, if any, and such other documents as the proper officer may require have been delivered to him;
(d) all duties leviable on any stores consumed in such conveyance, and all charges and penalties due in respect of such conveyance or from the person-in-charge thereof have been paid or the payment secured by such guarantee or deposit of such amount as the proper officer may direct;
(e) the person-in-charge of the conveyance has satisfied the proper officer that no penalty is leviable on him under section 116 or the payment of any penalty that may be levied upon him under that section has been secured by such guarantee or deposit of such amount as the proper officer may direct;
(f) in any case where any export goods have been loaded without payment of export duty or in contravention of any provision of this Act or any other law for the time being in force relating to export of goods,--
(i) such goods have been unloaded, or
(ii) where the 1[Assistant Commissioner of Customs or Deputy Commissioner of Customs] is satisfied that it is not practicable to unload such goods, the person-in-charge of the conveyance has given an undertaking, secured by such guarantee or deposit of such amount as the proper officer may direct, for bringing back the goods to India.
Section 42, The Customs Act, 1962 (Act 52 of 1962).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
This section refers to
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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British Airways Plc vs Union of India
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
An aircraft carrier engaged in the business of international air transport, though not technically the 'person incharge' as defined in Section 2(31) of the Customs Act, 1962, can be held liable under Section 116 for penalties regarding shortage in unloaded cargo, when the carrier's representatives physically handle the cargo, prepare the segregation report, account for goods against the cargo manifest, and represent themselves to customs officers as agents of the person incharge and are accepted as such. The issuance of a departure order under Section 42(2)(e) does not preclude subsequent penalty proceedings under Section 116, as these sections address different contingencies and involve different authorities with different objects.
On this section: Conditions for issuance of departure order for conveyance. Court distinguished this from Section 116 liability, holding that satisfaction at this prima facie stage does not preclude later penalty proceedings.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Questions about Section 42
What have the courts held on Section 42 of the Customs Act?
British Airways Plc vs Union of India (06 Nov 2001) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Conditions for issuance of departure order for conveyance. Court distinguished this from Section 116 liability, holding that satisfaction at this prima facie stage does not preclude later penalty proceedings.
How do I find court cases under Section 42 of the Customs Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Customs Act 1962 42, section 42 Customs Act 1962, section 42 of the Customs Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with British Airways Plc vs Union of India (06 Nov 2001).
What should I read with Section 42 of the Customs Act, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 38 (Power to require production of documents and ask questions), section 41 (Delivery of departure manifest or export manifest or export report), section 116 (Penalty for not accounting for goods), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it.
When did Section 42 of the Customs Act come into force?
Section 42 of the Customs Act, cited as Customs Act 1962 42, came into force on 01 Feb 1963, having been enacted on 13 Dec 1962. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 28. Recovery of duties not levied or not paid or short-levied or short-paid or erroneously refunded2145 words
- 2. Definitions1638 words
- 129A. Appeals to the Appellate Tribunal1170 words
- 27. Claim for refund of duty1060 words
- 127C. Procedure on receipt of an application under section 127B1056 words
- 138C. Admissibility of micro films, facsimile copies of documents and computer print outs as documents and as evidence872 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 16 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.