IPC Section 67 — Imprisonment for non-payment of fine, when offence punishable with fine only

Summary

If a person is convicted of an offence that is punishable only by a fine, and they do not pay that fine, the court can send them to prison instead. This imprisonment will be simple imprisonment, meaning without hard labour. The maximum time in prison depends on the amount of the fine: up to two months if the fine is fifty rupees or less, up to four months if the fine is one hundred rupees or less, and up to six months for any larger fine.

Official Text

If the offence be punishable with fine only, the imprisonment which the Court imposes in default of payment of the fine shall be simple, and the term for which the Court directs the offender to be imprisoned, in default of payment of fine, shall not exceed the following scale, that is to say,
for any term not exceeding two months when the amount of the fine shall not exceed fifty rupees,
and for any term not exceeding four months when the amount shall not exceed one hundred rupees,
and for any term not exceeding six months in any other case.

Related Judgments

• SHANTI LAL v. STATE — Supreme Court of India (2007)
• S.C.R. 276 STATE OF HARYANA v. SHAKUNTLA AND ORS — Supreme Court of India (2012)
• S.C.R. 962 KUMARAN v. STATE OF KERALA & ANR — Supreme Court of India (2017)
• S.C.R. 701 GAJRAJ v. STATE — Supreme Court of India (2011)
• S.C.R. 743 743 MANOJ PRATAP SINGH v. THE STATE OF RAJASTHAN — Supreme Court of India (2022)
• CHHAJULAL v. THE STATE OF RAJASTHAN M — Supreme Court of India (1972)
• S.C.R. SHARAD HIRU KOLAMBE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA AND OTHERS — Supreme Court of India (2018)
• SC (2024) Vol.7 p.756 — Supreme Court of India (2024)

Old <-> New Code Mapping

• BNS §8 — Amount of fine, liability in default of payment of fine, etc