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Section4
The Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, 2017

Exchange of specified bank notes

In force From 31 Dec 2016 Act 2 of 2017 As on 24 Oct 2026

Act 2 of 2017 Ministry Finance Enacted 27 Feb 2017 In force 31 Dec 2016 Cited by 1 provision Instruments 1

Section 4 of the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, 2017 deals with exchange of specified bank notes. Notwithstanding anything contained in section 3, the following persons holding specified bank notes on or before the 8th day of November, 2016 shall be entitled to tender within the grace period with such declarations or statements, at such offices of the Reserve Bank or in such other manner as may The Act came into force on 31 Dec 2016.

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 3, the following persons holding specified bank notes on or before the 8th day of November, 2016 shall be entitled to tender within the grace period with such declarations or statements, at such offices of the Reserve Bank or in such other manner as may be specified by it, namely:—

(i) a citizen of India who makes a declaration that he was outside India between the 9th November, 2016 to 30th December, 2016, subject to such conditions as may be specified, by notification, by the Central Government; or

(ii) such class of persons and for such reasons as may be specified by notification, by the Central Government.

(2) The Reserve Bank may, if satisfied, after making such verifications as it may consider necessary that the reasons for failure to deposit the notes within the period specified in the notification referred to in section 3, are genuine, credit the value of the notes in his Know Your Customer compliant bank account in such manner as may be specified by it.

(3) Any person, aggrieved by the refusal of the Reserve Bank to credit the value of the notes under sub-section (2), may make a representation to the Central Board of the Reserve Bank within fourteen days of the communication of such refusal to him.

Explanation.—For the purposes of this section, the expression "Know Your Customer compliant bank account" means the account which complies with the conditions specified in the regulations made by the Reserve Bank under the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 (10 of 1949).

Section 4, The Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, 2017 (Act 2 of 2017).

Cross-references

Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.

This section refers to

  1. s. 3 Specified bank notes to cease to be liability of Reserve Bank or Central Government

Referred to by 1

  1. s. 6 Penalty for contravention of section 4

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.

  1. Vivek Narayan Sharma v. Union of India

    Supreme Court of India 02 Jan 2023 Binding (Supreme Court) Reportable (2023) 3 SCC 1; WP(C) 906/2016 (SC) Judgement 02.01.2023

    Court's Decision & Legal Precedent

    Judgement order-147.pdf 2023-01-02 DATE VERIFIED (Constitution Bench; Gavai J. for majority; labelled Judgement of Main Case). On Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act 2017: s.3 extinguishes RBI/Central Government liability on SBNs that ceased to be legal tender under the 8.11.2016 RBI Act 26(2) notification; s.4 provides a grace-period exchange mechanism. Holding Issue (vi): RBI does not have independent power under s.4(2) in isolation of ss.3 and 4(1) to accept demonetised notes beyond the period specified in notifications under s.4(1) — ss.3 and 4 must be read contextually and harmoniously. (Same CNR already on RBI Act 26; this pass attaches the labelled merits PDF and remaps onto SBN Act teaching sections.)

    On this section: s.4 — grace-period exchange of SBNs; RBI has no independent s.4(2) power in isolation of ss.3 and 4(1) beyond notified grace periods.

    Read the full order on eCourts India

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.

Made under this section, and citing it

1 instrument names this provision in its title or its text without being made under it.

All subordinate legislation

Questions about Section 4

What have the courts held on Section 4 of the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act?

Vivek Narayan Sharma v. Union of India (02 Jan 2023) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: s.4 — grace-period exchange of SBNs; RBI has no independent s.4(2) power in isolation of ss.3 and 4(1) beyond notified grace periods.

How do I find court cases under Section 4 of the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) 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: Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act 4, section 4 Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, section 4 of the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) 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 Vivek Narayan Sharma v. Union of India (02 Jan 2023).

What should I read with Section 4 of the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, and has it changed?

Its own text turns on section 3 (Specified bank notes to cease to be liability of Reserve Bank or Central Government), so none of them can safely be read on its own. 1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it. One instrument names it without being made under it, most recently Specified Bank Notes (Deposit of Confiscated Notes) Rules, 2017. ( (2017).

When did Section 4 of the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act come into force?

Section 4 of the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, cited as Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act 4, came into force on 31 Dec 2016, having been enacted on 27 Feb 2017. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.

Other sections of this Act

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 24 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.