Cheque Bounce Notice Generator
The s.138 demand notice, with the deadlines checked before you post it.
Checks
Preview
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For general information only, not legal advice. Templates are generic starting points — have a qualified lawyer review anything you rely on.
About the Cheque Bounce Notice Generator
When a cheque bounces, the payee can prosecute the drawer under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 — but only after sending a written demand for the cheque amount within 30 days of learning of the dishonour, and only if the drawer then fails to pay within 15 days of receiving it. This generator drafts that statutory notice from the cheque, bank and return-memo details: the debt the cheque was given for, presentation within validity, the bank’s remark, the demand for “the said amount” within fifteen days, the consequences, and the mode of service.
For a cheque signed on behalf of a company or firm, the notice is addressed to the company and to each person in charge of its business (s.141). Before you download the DOCX or PDF, the checks confirm that the cheque was presented within its three-month validity and that the notice date is within the 30 days — and keep interest and costs out of the demand itself, a common reason notices fail.
How to use it
- Choose whether an advocate sends the notice (with letterhead) or you send it yourself — the Act only requires a notice in writing.
- Enter the payee and the drawer. For a company or firm, add every person in charge of its business (directors, partners, the signatory).
- Enter each dishonoured cheque: number, date, amount, the drawer’s bank, and the dates of presentation and the return memo, with the bank’s remark.
- Say what the cheque was for, your bank branch (it decides the court, s.142(2)) and how the drawer should pay. Optionally reserve interest and notice costs, kept separate from the demand.
- Set the date and mode of service, read the Checks, then download DOCX or PDF, sign it and send it by Registered Post A.D. or Speed Post to every addressee.
Examples
Cheque No. 004512 dated 20 Aug 2026 for Rs. 2,00,000 · presented 1 Sep · memo 3 Sep · bank told the payee 4 Sep · drawer: Falcon Traders Pvt Ltd and its two directors
“…my client calls upon you, the addressees, to make payment of the said amount of Rs. 2,00,000/- (Rupees Two Lakh Only), being the amount of the dishonoured cheque, to my client within fifteen days of the receipt of this notice.” Checks: send by 4 October 2026.
Rs. 2,00,000 and Rs. 1,50,000, returned on 3 Sep 2026, information on 4 and 5 Sep
One notice listing both cheques in a table, demanding Rs. 3,50,000/-; the earliest deadline (4 October 2026) applies.
Notice dated 6 October 2026 for a dishonour learned of on 4 September
Error: sent after the 30 days ended on 4 October 2026 — no complaint lies on this dishonour; present the cheque again while it is valid, or sue for the money.
Common uses
- A business whose customer’s cheque bounced, sending the notice to the company and its directors.
- An individual who lent money and received a cheque that was returned “funds insufficient”.
- An advocate preparing the first draft of a s.138 notice on letterhead, to edit in Word.
- Checking a notice you have received: was it sent in time, and does it demand the cheque amount?
What the notice must contain
Section 138 needs a demand for payment of “the said amount of money” — the cheque amount — made in writing to the drawer within 30 days of receiving the bank’s information that the cheque was returned unpaid (proviso (b)). The notice therefore states the debt or liability the cheque was given for (s.138 covers only a legally enforceable debt or liability), the cheque’s number, date, amount and bank, its presentation within validity, the return memo and the bank’s remark, and the demand to pay within 15 days of receipt.
Claims for interest or the cost of the notice are allowed, but the generator puts them in a separate “without prejudice” paragraph so that the demand for the cheque amount stands on its own.
Company and firm cheques (s.141)
If the drawer is a company — including a firm or other association of individuals — every person who, when the offence was committed, was in charge of and responsible to it for the conduct of its business is deemed guilty along with it, unless he proves it happened without his knowledge or despite due diligence (s.141(1)). For a firm, a “director” means a partner. A director nominated because of a government office or employment, or one in a government-controlled financial corporation, is not liable. The notice is addressed to the company (through its signatory) and to each person you list, with a paragraph on their role.
Deadlines and service
- Validity: the cheque must have been presented within 3 months of its date (RBI circular, for cheques dated on or after 1 April 2012).
- Notice: within 30 days of receiving the bank’s information (s.138(b)) — the date you send it is what counts.
- Payment: the drawer has 15 days from receiving it (s.138(c)); the complaint can be filed only after that and within one month (s.142(1)(b)).
- Service: send it by Registered Post A.D. or Speed Post to each addressee — a properly addressed registered letter is presumed served (General Clauses Act s.27). Copies by e-mail or WhatsApp are useful extra proof. Use the cheque bounce timeline calculator once you know the delivery date.
Sources
- Negotiable Instruments Act 1881 — ss.138, 139, 141, 142, 143A, 147, 148
- RBI circular DBOD.AML BC.No.47/14.01.001/2011-12 — three-month validity
- General Clauses Act 1897 — ss.9, 27
- Supreme Court: NEPC Micon v. Magma Leasing (1999) on “account closed”; Modi Cements v. Kuchil Kumar Nandi (1998) on “payment stopped”; Laxmi Dyechem v. State of Gujarat (2012) on signature mismatches
Limitations
- A generic template, not legal advice — have a lawyer review it, especially for company cheques, multiple cheques or disputed debts.
- It does not decide whether the debt is legally enforceable or whether the drawer has a defence; the presumption in favour of the holder (s.139) can be rebutted.
- Court holidays and postal delays are not checked. The notice is in English; for another language, translate it before sending.
- The first DOCX or PDF download needs a connection to load the document engine; Copy and Print work offline.
Privacy
Everything happens in your browser. Names, addresses, cheque and account details are not uploaded or stored by MySmartCoPilot. If you tick Keep a draft in this browser, the form is saved in this browser’s local storage until you untick it.
Frequently asked questions
Within how many days must a cheque bounce notice be sent?
Within 30 days of receiving the bank’s information that the cheque was returned unpaid (s.138 proviso (b)). The 30 days are counted from the day after you receive the information; what matters is the date you send the notice.
Can I send a cheque bounce notice without a lawyer?
Yes. Section 138 only requires a notice in writing from the payee or holder in due course to the drawer. An advocate’s notice is common, and a lawyer should check the facts, but you can sign and send it yourself — choose “I am sending it myself”.
Should the notice ask for interest and costs?
The demand must be for the cheque amount. Interest and notice costs may be mentioned, but keep them separate: a notice that demands only a different total, without clearly stating the cheque amount, risks being held invalid. The generator does this for you.
Do I need to send the notice to the directors of a company?
Section 141 makes the persons in charge of the company’s business liable along with it, so it is usual — and safer — to address the notice to the company and to each director or partner you intend to prosecute, and to send each a copy.
What if the drawer refuses the notice or it comes back unclaimed?
A notice sent by registered post or Speed Post to the correct address is presumed served (General Clauses Act s.27), and courts generally treat a refused or unclaimed notice as served. Keep the returned envelope unopened and the tracking report.
When can I file the complaint after sending the notice?
After the drawer’s 15 days to pay have ended — from the next day — and within one month of that day (s.142(1)(b)). The cheque bounce timeline calculator works out the dates.