Stamp Act, 1977 (1920 A. D.)
No: 40 Dated: Apr, 01 1978
THE STAMP ACT, 1977 (1920 A. D.)
(Act No. XL of Svt. 1977)
An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to Stamps.
Whereas it is expedient to consolidate and amend the law relating to stamps;
It is hereby enacted as follows:-
CHAPTER I
Preliminary
1. Name, extent and enforcement. - (1) This Act may be called the Stamp Act, 1977.
(2) It extends to the whole of Jammu and Kashmir State. It shall come into force on the 1st day of Baisakh, 1978.
2. Definitions. - In this Act, unless there is something repugnant in the subject or context,-
(1) "Banker" means an association, a company or a person ho accepts, for the purposes of lending or investment, deposits of money from the public, repayable on demand or otherwise and withdrawable by cheque, draft, order or otherwise;
(2) "Bill of exchange". - "bill of exchange" means a bill of exchange as defined by the Negotiable Instruments Act, and includes also a hundi, and any other document entitling or purporting to entitle any person, whether named therein or not, to payment by any other person of, or to draw upon any other person for, any sum of money;
(3) "Bill of exchange payable on demand". - "bill of exchange payable on demand" includes,-
(a) an order for the payment of any sum of money by a bill of exchange or promissory note, or for the delivery of any bill of exchange or promissory note in satisfaction of any sum of money, or for the payment of any sum of money out of any particular fund which may or may not be available, or upon any condition or contingency which may or may not be performed or happen;
(b) an order for the payment of any sum of money weekly, monthly or at any other stated periods; and
(c) a letter of credit, that is to say, any instrument by which one person authorises another to give credit to the person in whose favour it is drawn ;
(4) Omitted.
(5) "Bond". - "bond" includes-
(a) any instrument whereby a person obliges himself to pay money to another, on condition that the obligation shall be void if a specified act is performed, or is not performed, as the case may be ;
(b) any instrument attested by a witness and not payable to order or bearer, whereby a person obliges himself to pay money to another; and
(c) any instrument so attested, whereby a person obliges himself to deliver grain or other agricultural produce to another.
Explanation. - Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force, for the purposes of this clause "attested", in relation to an instrument means attested by one or more witnesses each of whom has seen the executant sign of affix his mark to the instrument; or has seen the executant sign or has received from the executant personal acknowledgement of his signature or mark or of the signature of such other person, and each of whom has signed the instrument in the presence of the executant, but it shall not be necessary that more than one of such witnesses shall have been present at the same time, and no particular form of attestation shall be necessary;
(6) "Chargeable". - "chargeable" means, as applied to an instrument executed or first executed after the commencement of this Act, chargeable under this Act, and as applied to any other instrument, chargeable under the law in force in the State when such instrument was executed or, where several persons executed the instrument at different times, first executed;
(7) "Cheque". - "cheque" means a bill of exchange drawn on a specified banker and not expressed to be payable otherwise than on demand;
(8) Omitted.
(9) "Collector" means the Deputy Commissioner of a district and includes any officer whom the Government may, by notification in the Government Gazette, appoint this behalf and on whom any or all powers of the Collector under this Act are conferred by the said notification or any other notification;
(9-A) "Commissioner of Stamps" means such officer as the Government, may, by notification in the Government Gazette, appoint in this behalf, for the whole or any part of the State;
(10) "conveyance" includes-
(i) a conveyance on sale;
(ii) every decree or final order of any civil court or revenue authority;
(iii) every order made by the High Court/ Tribunal under section 394 of the Companies Act, 1956 (Central Act) in respect of the amalgamation or reconstruction of companies;
(iv) every order made by the Reserve Bank of India under section 44A of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 in respect of amalgamation or reconstruction of Banking Companies; and
(v) any other instrument,
by which property, whether movable or immovable, or any estate or interest in any property is transferred to, or vested in, any other person inter vivos and which is not specifically provided for by Schedule-I;
(10-A) "Deputy Commissioner of Stamps" means an officer appointed by the Government as Deputy Commissioner of Stamps.
(11) "Duly stamped". - "duly stamped", as applied to an instrument, means that the instrument bears a stamp of not less than the proper amount and that such stamp has been affixed or used in accordance with the law for the time being in force in the State ;
(12) "Executed and execution" used with reference to instruments, means "signed" and "signature", and includes attribution of electronic record as per section 11 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (Central Act 21 of 2000);
(12A) "immovable property" includes land, buildings, hereditary allowances, rights to way, light, ferries and fisheries or any other benefit arising out of land and things attached to the earth or anything permanently fastened to anything permanently fastened to anything attached to the earth but does not include standing timber, growing crops or grass;
(13) "Impressed stamp". - "impressed stamp" includes-
(a) labels affixed and impressed by the proper officer, and
(b) stamps embossed or engraved on stamped paper ;
(c) impression, mark or endorsement by a machine or any other mode of stamping, as the Government may, by notification in the Government Gazette, specify;
(14) "Instrument" includes every document and every electronic record as defined under clause (t) of section 2 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (Central Act 21 of 2000) by which any right or liability is or is purported to be, created, transferred, limited, extended, extinguished or recorded and any other document mentioned in the Schedule-I;
(15) "Instrument of partition" means any instrument whereby co-owners of any property divide or agree to divide such property in severalty, and also includes-
(a) a final order for effecting a partition passed by any Revenue Authority or any Civil Court
(b) an award by an arbitrator directing the partition; and
(c) when any partition is effected without executing any such instrument, any instrument signed by co-owners and recording, whether by way of a declaration of such partition or otherwise, the terms of such partition amongst the co-owners;
(16) "Lease". - "lease" means a lease of immovable property, and includes also-
(a) a patta;
(b) a kabuliyat or other undertaking in writing, not being a counterpart of a lease, to cultivate, occupy or pay or deliver rent for, immovable property ;
(c) any instrument by which tolls of any description are let;
(d) any writing on an application for a lease intended to signify that the application is granted.
(e) any agreement to lease; and
(f) a decree or final order of any civil or revenue court, by which the lease rights are transferred in favour of these lessee;
(16A) "market value" in relation to any property which is the subject matter of an instrument, means the price which such property would fetch or would have fetched if sold in open market on the date of execution of such instrument as determined in such manner and by such authority as specified in this Act, or the rules made thereunder or the considerations stated in the instrument, whichever is higher;
(16B) "marketable security" means a security of such a description as to be capable of being sold in any stock market in India or abroad;
(17) "Mortgage deed." - "mortgage-deed" includes every instrument whereby, for the purpose of securing money advanced, or to be advanced, by way of loan, or an existing or future debt, or the performance of a engagement, one person transfers, or creates, to, or in favour of, another, a right over or in respect of specified property;
(17A) "movable property" includes standing timber, growing crops and grass, and fruit upon, or juice in, the trees, and property of every other description except immovable property;
(18) "Paper". - "paper" includes vellum, parchment or any other material on which an instrument may be written ;
(19) "Policy of insurance". - "policy of insurance" includes-
(a) any instrument by which one person, in consideration of a premium, engages to indemnify another against loss, damage or liability arising from an unknown or contingent event;
(b) a life-policy, and any policy insuring any person against accident or sickness, and any other personal insurance;
(20) Omitted.
(21) "power of attorney" includes any instrument (not chargeable with a fee under the law relating to court-fees for the time being in force) empowering a specified person to act for, and in the name of, the person executing it and includes an instrument by which a person, not being a person who is legal practitioner, is authorised to appear on behalf of any party in any proceeding before any cour, tribunal or authority;
(22) Promissory note. - "promissory note" means a promissory note as defined by the Negotiable Instruments Act;
it also includes, a note promising the payment of any sum of money out of any particular fund which may or may not be available, or upon any condition or contingency which may or may not be performed or happen.
(22A) "public officer" means a public officer as defined in clause (17) of section 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure, Samvat 1977;
(23) "Receipt". - "receipt" includes any note, memorandum or writing-
(a) whereby any money, or any bill of exchange, cheque or promissory note is acknowledged to have been received, or
(b) whereby any other movable property is acknowledged to have been received in satisfaction of a debt, or
(c) where by any debt or demand, or any part of a debt or demand, is acknowledged to have been satisfied or discharged, or
(d) which signifies or imports any such acknowledgement,
and whether the same is or is not signed with the name of any person; and
(23-A) "Rural Areas" mean areas which do not fall within the limits of any Municipal Corporation, Municipal Council or Municipal Committee constituted under any law for the time being force.
(24) "Settlement". - "settlement" means any non-testamentary disposition, in writing, of movable or immovable property made-
(a) in consideration of marriage,
(b) for the purpose of distributing property of the settler among his family or those for whom he desires to provide, or for the purpose of providing for some person dependent on him, or
(c) for any religious or charitable purpose;
and includes an agreement in writing to make such a disposition and where any such disposition has not been made in writing, any instrument recording, whether by way of declaration of trust or otherwise, the terms of any such disposition.
(24A) "Stamp". - "stamp" means any mark, seal or endorsement by any agency or person duly authorized by the State Government, and includes an adhesive or impressed or electronic stamp, for the purpose of duty chargeable under this Act.
(25) "Urban Areas" mean areas falling within the limits of any Municipal Corporation, Municipal Council or Municipal Committee constituted under any law for the time being in force"