Sections 1 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Sections 1 and 2 are the opening provisions of the Limitation Act, 1963. Section 1 gives the Act its name, says where it extends and leaves the start date to a notification. Section 2 defines fourteen terms, from "applicant" to "trustee", that the rest of the Act and its Schedule rely on.
This article follows the consolidated text of the Act consulted (latest amendment shown: Act 46 of 1999). Later amendments should be checked before you rely on any detail here.
The Act is called the Limitation Act, 1963. As printed, it extends to the whole of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir and came into force on 1 January 1964 by notification. Section 2 widens words like "plaintiff", "defendant" and "applicant" to include people who claim through others, and it says what "suit", "tort", "bond" and "trustee" mean. A "suit" does not include an appeal or an application, which matters when you read the Schedule.
Section 1: short title, extent and commencement
Section 1(1) says the Act may be called the Limitation Act, 1963.
Section 1(2) reads, as printed: "It extends to the whole of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir." The print does not update this wording for later changes in the law, so check the current law for the position of that territory before relying on it.
Section 1(3) says the Act comes into force on such date as the Central Government may appoint by notification in the Official Gazette. A footnote to the sub-section records the dates the print gives:
| Place | Date given in the footnote |
|---|---|
| General commencement | 1 January 1964 (notification S.O. 3118 dated 29 October 1963) |
| State of Sikkim | 1 September 1984 (notification S.O. 647(C) dated 24 August 1984) |
| West Bengal | Only a note: "Amended in West Bengal by W.B. Act 18 of 1977" |
The source does not say what the West Bengal Act changed, so this article does not either. If your matter is in West Bengal, read that State Act directly.
Commencement matters because the Act's transitional rules (sections 30 and 31) turn on "the commencement of this Act". Those are covered in our article on sections 30 and 31.
If you are weighing a claim that may be out of time, a legal consultation before you draft anything helps you place the dates correctly.
Section 2: the definitions
Section 2 opens with "unless the context otherwise requires", so each meaning gives way if a provision plainly uses the word differently. The clauses are:
| Clause | Term | What the Act says |
|---|---|---|
| (a) | "applicant" | Includes a petitioner; a person from or through whom the applicant derives the right to apply; a person whose estate the applicant represents as executor, administrator or other representative |
| (b) | "application" | Includes a petition |
| (c) | "bill of exchange" | Includes a hundi and a cheque |
| (d) | "bond" | Includes any instrument by which a person obliges himself to pay money to another on condition that the obligation is void if a specified act is performed or is not performed |
| (e) | "defendant" | Includes a person from or through whom the defendant derives liability to be sued; a person whose estate the defendant represents as executor, administrator or other representative |
| (f) | "easement" | Includes a right not arising from contract, by which one person may remove and appropriate for his own profit any part of the soil of another, or anything growing in, attached to or subsisting upon another's land |
| (g) | "foreign country" | Any country other than India |
| (h) | "good faith" | Nothing is done in good faith which is not done with due care and attention |
| (i) | "plaintiff" | Includes a person from or through whom the plaintiff derives the right to sue; a person whose estate the plaintiff represents as executor, administrator or other representative |
| (j) | "period of limitation" and "prescribed period" | See below |
| (k) | "promissory note" | An instrument by which the maker engages absolutely to pay a specified sum to another at a time therein limited, or on demand, or at sight |
| (l) | "suit" | Does not include an appeal or an application |
| (m) | "tort" | A civil wrong which is not exclusively the breach of a contract or the breach of a trust |
| (n) | "trustee" | Does not include a benamidar, a mortgagee remaining in possession after the mortgage has been satisfied, or a person in wrongful possession without title |
Parties who claim through others: clauses (a), (e) and (i)
These three clauses work the same way. The word "plaintiff" in the Act is not limited to the person named on the plaint. It also covers someone from or through whom the plaintiff gets the right to sue, and a person whose estate the plaintiff represents. "Defendant" and "applicant" are widened in the same manner. So where the Act speaks of the plaintiff's right to sue, it reaches back to the person the plaintiff derives that right from. For instance, if Anand Stores dies and its executor sues for a debt, the executor stands within the word "plaintiff" because the estate is represented by him.
"Application" and "suit": clauses (b) and (l)
An "application" includes a petition. A "suit" does not include an appeal or an application. The Schedule is built on this split: its First Division is for suits, its Second Division for appeals and its Third Division for applications. A time limit written for a suit is therefore not read as covering an appeal or an application. Our article on the Schedule and how to read it explains the layout.
Instruments: clauses (c), (d) and (k)
A "bill of exchange" includes a hundi and a cheque. A "promissory note" is a written engagement by the maker to pay a specified sum absolutely, whether at a fixed time, on demand or at sight. A "bond" is an instrument promising payment with a condition that voids the obligation if a named act is done or not done. These meanings feed the Schedule entries on bonds, bills and notes. For the underlying instruments you can read our posts on a promissory note and a bill of exchange under the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.
"Foreign country" and "good faith": clauses (g) and (h)
A foreign country is any country other than India. Good faith is tested by due care and attention: a step taken carelessly is not treated as taken in good faith. This matters wherever the Act asks whether something was done in good faith, such as time spent in another court or on an application to sue as a pauper.
"Tort", "easement" and "trustee": clauses (f), (m) and (n)
A tort is a civil wrong that is not purely a breach of contract or of trust. The Act's definition of easement is a specific one: a right not arising from contract to remove and take part of another's soil or of what grows on or is attached to it. The trustee definition excludes a benamidar, a mortgagee who stays in possession after the mortgage is satisfied, and a person in wrongful possession without title. The word "benamidar" is the Act's own; in plain terms it is a person who holds property in name only for someone else.
"Period of limitation" and "prescribed period": clause (j)
Clause (j) separates two ideas:
- Period of limitation is the period prescribed for a suit, appeal or application by the Schedule. This is the raw figure printed in the middle column.
- Prescribed period is the period of limitation computed in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
The difference is practical. If a Schedule period is three years, that is the period of limitation. The prescribed period is that figure after the Act's rules on excluding days, disability, acknowledgment and the like have been applied. Section 3 then bars a suit, appeal or application made after the prescribed period. See sections 3 and 4 for that bar.
Section 29(2) lets a special or local law fix its own period, so the Schedule does not govern proceedings under laws such as tax, insolvency, company, arbitration, consumer, MSME or cheque dishonour statutes. Look at the relevant law first. If you want an older overview of limitation in general, our earlier guide on limitation periods for suits and appeals is available, though it should be read alongside the Act itself.
Need help with a limitation question?
If a debt, property claim or notice is close to its time limit, talk to us before you act. We can read your dates against the Act and tell you whether a legal consultation is the right next step or whether the matter belongs under a special law.
Key takeaways
- The Act is the Limitation Act, 1963; section 1(2), as printed, excludes the State of Jammu and Kashmir, so check the current law on that point.
- The footnote gives 1 January 1964 as the commencement date and 1 September 1984 for Sikkim.
- Section 2 widens "applicant", "defendant" and "plaintiff" to cover people who claim through others.
- A "suit" excludes appeals and applications, which is why the Schedule has three Divisions.
- "Period of limitation" is the Schedule figure; "prescribed period" is that figure computed under the Act.
- A special or local law may fix a different period (section 29(2)).
Read next
- Sections 3–4: bar of limitation and court closed on the last day
- Section 5: condonation of delay and sufficient cause
- The Schedule: three Divisions and how to read the periods
- Time limits under Section 138: critical deadlines
Disclaimer: Based on a consolidated text of the Limitation Act, 1963 and its Schedule whose latest amendment shown is Act 46 of 1999, as consulted on 2 October 2026. A special or local law may fix a different period; later amendments and the current procedural law should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.