Chapter V MODE OF LEVYING FEES

All fees shall be charged and collected under this Act at the rate in force on the date on which the document chargeable to court-fees is or was presented.

(1) All fees chargeable under this Act shall be collected by stamps or by e-payment. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where - (a) the State Government, in relation to any area in the State, or (b) the Collector, in relation to any area in the district under his charge, is satisfied that on account of temporary shortage of stamps in any area, fee cannot be paid, and payment of fee cannot be indicated on documents, by means of stamps, the State Government, or as the case may be, the Collector may by notification in the Official Gazette, direct that in such area and for such period as may be specified in such notification, the fee may be paid in cash in any Government treasury or sub-treasury, and the officer-in-charge of such treasury or sub-treasury shall, on production of a challan evidencing payment of fee in such treasury or sub-treasury, certify such payment by endorsement on the document in respect of which fee has been so paid, and state in the said endorsement the amount of the fee so paid. (3) An endorsement made on any document under sub-section (2) shall have the same effect as if the fee of an amount equal to the amount stated in the endorsement had been paid in respect of, and such payment had been indicated on, such document by means of stamps under sub-section (1).

The State Government may, from time to time make rules for regulating -. (a) the supply of stamps to be used under this Act, (b) the number of stamps to be used for denoting any fee chargeable under this Act, (c) the renewal of damaged or spoiled stamps, (d) the keeping accounts of all stamps used under this Act, and (e) the manner of payment of court-fees and refund thereof by e-payment: Provided that in the case of stamps used under section 3 in the High Court, such rules shall be made, with the concurrence of the Chief Justice of such Court. All such rules shall be published in the Official Gazette, and shall thereupon have the force of law.

No documents which ought to bear stamp under this Act shall be of any validity, unless and until it is properly stamped. But, if any such document is through mistake or inadvertence received, filed or used in any Court or office, without being properly stamped, the presiding Judge or the Head of the Office, as the ease may be, or in the case of the High Court, any Judge of such Court, may, if he thinks fit, order that such document be stamped as he may direct; and, or such document being stamped accordingly, the same and every proceeding relative thereto shall be valid as if it had been properly stamped in the first instance.

Where any such document is amended in order merely to correct a mistake and to make it conform to the original intention of the parties, it shall not be necessary to impose a fresh stamp.

No document requiring a stamp under this Act shall be filed or acted upon in any proceeding in any Court or office until the stamp has been cancelled. Such officer as the Court or the head of office may from time to time appoint shall, on receiving any such document, forthwith effect such cancellation by punching out the figure-head so as to leave the amount designated on the stamp untouched, and the part removed by punching shall be burnt or otherwise destroyed: Provided that where court-fees is paid by e-payment the officer competent to cancel the stamps shall verity the genuineness of the payment and after satisfying himself that the court-fees is paid, shall lock the entry in the computer and make an endorsement under his signature on the document that the court-fees is paid and the entry is locked.