Limitation Periods in India That Advocates Confuse (2026): The Article-by-Article Table, and How Acknowledgement (S.18) / Part-Payment (S.19) Resets the Clock
In India, the usual period to file a money-recovery suit is 3 years, a cheque-bounce (Section 138) complaint must be filed within 1 month of the cause of action, most first appeals must be filed in 30 days (90 days to a High Court), and a decree can be executed for 12 years. Each limit comes from a specific Article in the Schedule to the Limitation Act, 1963, and the mistake that sinks cases is not knowing which Article applies or when the clock starts — because under Section 3 of the Act a court must dismiss a time-barred suit even if the opposite side never raises limitation.
A limitation period is the fixed window, set by the Schedule to the Limitation Act, 1963, within which a suit, appeal or application must be filed; once it expires the remedy is barred by law even though the underlying right survives.
This page is a verified, article-by-article reference for the limitation periods juniors and litigants most often get wrong, plus the two provisions — Section 18 and Section 19 — that can legally restart a clock you thought had run out. Every number below is tied to its Article or Section so you can check it against the bare Act on India Code before you rely on it.
The limitation-periods table (verify the Article before you file)
| What you are filing | Period | Article / Section (Limitation Act, 1963) | Clock starts from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Money lent / simple loan recovery | 3 years | Art. 19 (money lent) | Date the loan was made (if no repayment date fixed) |
| Price of goods sold / open account | 3 years | Art. 14 / Art. 1 (mutual, open & current account) | Delivery / close of the year in the account |
| Any suit with no specific Article | 3 years | Art. 113 (residuary) | When the right to sue accrues |
| Specific performance of a contract | 3 years | Art. 54 | Date fixed for performance, else when performance is refused |
| Suit for a declaration | 3 years | Art. 58 | When the right to sue first accrues |
| Compensation for breach of contract | 3 years | Art. 55 | When the contract is broken |
| Possession of immovable property based on title | 12 years | Art. 65 | When the defendant's possession becomes adverse |
| Mortgage — recovery of money by sale | 12 years | Art. 62 | When the money becomes due |
| Cheque bounce complaint (Section 138 NI Act) | 1 month | S.142(b), NI Act 1881 | Date the cause of action arose (after the 15-day notice period) |
| Appeal to a High Court under the CPC | 90 days | Art. 116(a) | Date of the decree or order |
| Appeal to any other court under the CPC | 30 days | Art. 116(b) | Date of the decree or order |
| Appeal from a High Court to the same High Court | 30 days | Art. 117 | Date of the decree or order |
| Restoration of a suit dismissed in default | 30 days | Art. 122 | Date of dismissal |
| Setting aside an ex-parte decree | 30 days | Art. 123 | Date of the decree / knowledge |
| Execution of a decree or order | 12 years | Art. 136 | When the decree becomes enforceable |
| Any application with no specific Article | 3 years | Art. 137 (residuary) | When the right to apply accrues |
The periods above are the defaults. A special law can override them — for example, a Section 34 challenge to an arbitral award runs on its own 3-month (+30-day) clock, not the Limitation Act's residuary Article: see our guide on the limitation to set aside an arbitral award under Section 34. Always check whether the statute you are suing under sets its own period.
Money recovery: which Article — and the 3-year trap
The single most litigated confusion is the recovery suit. For a simple loan with no fixed repayment date, Article 19 gives 3 years running from the date the money was lent — not from the date you demanded it back. Where the claim does not fit any specific Article, courts fall back on the residuary Article 113 (also 3 years, from when the right to sue accrues). The practical consequence is the same number, but the start date can differ by years, so plead the facts that fix your start date.
Before you sue to recover money, note that a legal notice is mandatory before some suits and optional for others, and the notice does not pause the limitation clock. The same 3-year logic governs a tenant chasing a landlord who will not return the security deposit and an MSME recovering a delayed payment under Section 18 of the MSMED Act. A Hindi walk-through of the 3-years-vs-12-years question is on our page वाद की limitation 3 या 12 साल — कौन-सा Article.
Cheque bounce (Section 138): the one-month window that is easy to miss
A Section 138 complaint has the shortest limit on this page: one month. Under Section 142(b) of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, the complaint must be filed within one month of the date on which the cause of action arose — and the cause of action arises only after the drawer fails to pay within 15 days of receiving your demand notice. Miss the month and the court can still take cognizance under the proviso to Section 142(b), but only if you file an application showing sufficient cause for the delay.
Two earlier steps control that start date: proper service of the demand notice (what counts as service when the notice is returned unclaimed is covered here) and filing in the right court (territorial jurisdiction after the 2015 amendment).
Appeals: 30 vs 90 days — and why the clock really starts at the certified copy
An appeal to a High Court from a decree carries 90 days (Article 116(a)); an appeal to any lower court carries 30 days (Article 116(b)); an intra-High-Court appeal (such as a Letters Patent appeal) carries 30 days (Article 117). The number advocates forget is in Section 12: the time taken to obtain the certified copy of the judgment and decree is excluded when computing the appeal period. In practice that is why the appeal clock effectively begins when you apply for — and the court issues — the certified copy, not on the day the judgment is pronounced. If you have not yet applied, read how to obtain a certified copy and why the appeal clock starts there.
Two short-fuse restoration remedies sit alongside appeals: a suit dismissed in default is restored under Order 9 Rule 9 within 30 days (Article 122), and an ex-parte decree is set aside within 30 days under Article 123.
Execution of a decree: you have 12 years (Article 136)
Winning the decree is not the deadline that matters next — executing it is. Article 136 gives 12 years to execute a decree or order of a civil court, counted from the date the decree becomes enforceable (for a decree directing payment on a future date, from that date). It is the longest ordinary period in the Schedule, but the step-by-step mechanics of filing and the interaction with the 12-year limit are in our guide to the execution petition for a money decree under Order 21 CPC. An application to execute a foreign decree is governed instead by the 3-year residuary Article 137.
How acknowledgement (Section 18) and part-payment (Section 19) reset the clock
Two provisions can lawfully give you a fresh limitation period on an otherwise ageing debt.
Section 18: a signed written acknowledgement of liability, made before the limitation period expires, starts a fresh period of the same length from the date of the acknowledgement. The writing need not promise to pay or even state an amount — a clear admission of an existing liability (an email, a ledger confirmation, a reply to a notice) is enough.
Section 19: a part-payment of the debt — or payment of interest — before expiry, where the fact of payment appears in the handwriting of, or in a writing signed by, the payer, starts a fresh period from the date of payment.
The discipline both Sections demand is timing and writing: the acknowledgement or payment must come before the original period runs out, and it must be in writing signed by the debtor. A bounced cheque is not a payment and cannot save limitation under Section 19.
What if the deadline has already passed? (Section 5 — and where it does NOT apply)
Section 5 lets a court condone delay in filing an appeal or an application if you show sufficient cause — a short, well-explained delay, supported by an affidavit, is condonable. But there is a hard limit that catches litigants every year: Section 5 does not apply to suits. In Liansanga v. Union of India (2022) the Supreme Court confirmed that the power to condone delay under Section 5 does not extend to suits — a suit filed even one day late is barred by Section 3, full stop. So delay in an appeal may be forgiven; delay in a suit usually cannot be.
Cost, documents, how long, and when you need an advocate
What it costs: Filing itself is driven by the court fee, which is ad valorem on the suit value for money claims and fixed for most appeals; a condonation or restoration application is a fixed, nominal fee.
Documents you need: the cause-of-action document (loan receipt, invoice, cheque + bank memo, contract), any Section 18 acknowledgement or Section 19 payment proof, and for an appeal the certified copy of the impugned judgment and decree.
How long you have — and how long it takes: the filing window is the table above; the disposal is a different and grim number — over 4.9 crore cases are pending in India's district and subordinate courts, with roughly 64 lakh more in the High Courts (Government data tabled in Parliament, 2026; live figures at njdg.ecourts.gov.in). Filing on time is the one delay fully in your control.
DIY vs advocate: computing the exact start date (date of loan vs date of default, pronouncement vs certified copy) and choosing the correct Article are judgment calls where an advocate earns the fee — especially near the deadline, where picking Article 19 over Article 113, or missing the Section 12 exclusion, decides whether the case is heard at all.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the limitation period for a money recovery suit in India?
Three years. A suit to recover money lent is governed by Article 19 of the Limitation Act, 1963, running from the date the loan was made where no repayment date is fixed; a claim that fits no specific Article falls under the residuary Article 113, also three years, running from when the right to sue accrues.
How long do I have to file a cheque bounce complaint under Section 138?
One month. Section 142(b) of the Negotiable Instruments Act requires the complaint within one month of the cause of action, which arises after the drawer fails to pay within 15 days of your demand notice. A late complaint can still be entertained only if the court condones the delay for sufficient cause.
Can a court condone delay in filing a suit under Section 5?
No. Section 5 of the Limitation Act allows condonation of delay only for appeals and applications, not suits. The Supreme Court confirmed this in Liansanga v. Union of India (2022); a time-barred suit is dismissed under Section 3 regardless of the reason for delay.
Does sending a legal notice stop the limitation clock?
No. A legal notice neither pauses nor extends limitation; the clock keeps running while you wait for a reply. Only a written acknowledgement under Section 18 or a part-payment under Section 19, made before the period expires, starts a fresh period.
How long do I have to execute a decree after winning?
Twelve years, under Article 136 of the Limitation Act, counted from the date the decree becomes enforceable. This is separate from, and much longer than, the appeal period — but if you let it lapse, the decree becomes a paper victory you can no longer enforce.
Why does the appeal period effectively start from the certified copy?
Because Section 12 excludes the time taken to obtain the certified copy of the judgment and decree when computing the limitation period for an appeal. So although the period (30 or 90 days) is counted from the date of the decree, the days spent obtaining the certified copy are added back, effectively starting your usable clock from the copy.
How Urava helps
Limitation is where good cases die on a technicality — the wrong Article, the wrong start date, a missed Section 12 exclusion. Urava is an AI legal-research assistant for Indian law that works over WhatsApp: ask it a limitation question in plain English, Hindi or Malayalam (or upload a scanned notice or order), and it returns a court-ready, citation-backed research memorandum — the governing Article, the start date rule, the controlling judgments (verified, not invented) — as a PDF in about ten minutes. Start free with 3 researches at urava.app/register and check your deadline before it checks you.