How Court Fees Are Calculated in India (2026)
How court fees are calculated in India: the Court Fees Act, 1870 and state Acts, the difference between ad valorem and fixed fees, how the suit value is worked out, what happens if you pay too little, and when a refund applies.
How-To Guide · Court Fees
Before a court will take up your case, you must pay the correct court fee, and getting the figure wrong can hold up or even sink a filing. Court fees in India are set by the Court Fees Act, 1870 and by each state's own court-fee law, and the amount usually depends on the value of what you are claiming. This guide explains the two kinds of fee, how the suit value is worked out, what happens if you pay too little, and when you can get the fee back. Last verified October 2026.
- Law: the central Court Fees Act, 1870 plus the court-fee Act of your state, so rates vary.
- Ad valorem: a percentage of the value of the claim, from Schedule I (money and property suits).
- Fixed: a flat fee from Schedule II, regardless of value (many applications and petitions).
- Refund: Section 16 allows a refund, often a full one, where a case settles through mediation under Section 89 CPC.
01The short answer
Court fees in India are calculated under the Court Fees Act, 1870 and the court-fee law of the state where you file. For most money and property cases the fee is ad valorem, which means it is a percentage of the value of what you are claiming, taken from Schedule I. For many other matters the fee is fixed, a flat amount set in Schedule II regardless of the value involved.
So the first question is what you are claiming and how much it is worth. For a money suit the value is the amount claimed. For a property suit it is usually the market value. Once you know the value and the rate, the fee follows.
02Which law applies: central and state
The Court Fees Act, 1870 is the central law. But court fees are a subject on which states legislate, so most states have either amended the 1870 Act or passed their own court-fee Act, for example in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and others.
Always check your state Act
The rates, the maximum fee and the refund rules differ from state to state. A fee that is correct in one state may be wrong in another, so use the court-fee law of the state where the case is filed, not a general figure from the internet.
Because of this, there is no single all-India rupee figure. What is common everywhere is the method: decide if the fee is ad valorem or fixed, find the value, and apply the schedule.
03Ad valorem fees vs fixed fees
There are two ways a court fee is charged.
| Fee type | How it is set | Where it comes from | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ad valorem | A percentage of the value of the claim, so it rises with the amount | Schedule I of the Court Fees Act | Money suits, property suits, most suits with a money value |
| Fixed | A flat amount, the same whatever the value | Schedule II of the Court Fees Act | Many applications, petitions and documents with no money value |
In short, ad valorem fees track the size of the claim, while fixed fees do not. For a full comparison with examples, see our explainer on ad valorem vs fixed court fees.
04How the suit value is worked out
For ad valorem fees, everything turns on the value of the subject matter. Section 7 of the Court Fees Act sets out how to compute it for different suits:
- Money suits: the value is the amount claimed. The Supreme Court has confirmed that ad valorem fees on a money suit for compensation or damages are charged on the amount claimed.
- Property suits: the value is usually the market value of the property, or a value fixed by the method in the Act, depending on the relief.
- Certain declaratory and injunction reliefs: for a limited list of reliefs under Section 7(iv), the plaintiff may state their own valuation of the relief sought, and the fee is charged on that.
Getting the valuation right is the heart of the calculation. If the value is understated to pay a smaller fee, the court can order you to make good the shortfall before it proceeds.
05What happens if you pay too little
If the court fee paid is short, the plaint is not properly stamped. Under the Code of Civil Procedure, the court will give you time to pay the deficit. If you still do not make it good within the time allowed, the plaint can be rejected under Order 7 Rule 11 of the CPC.
A rejected plaint is not decided on the merits, and it can also cause a limitation problem if the period expires while you are curing the defect. The safe course is to compute and pay the correct fee at the time of filing, and to keep proof of payment.
06When you can get a refund
Court fees are not always lost. The main situations where a refund applies are:
- Settlement through mediation or other alternative dispute resolution: where a case is settled under Section 89 of the CPC, courts routinely direct a full refund of the court fee under Section 16 of the Court Fees Act. Some courts extend this to out-of-court settlements as well.
- Appeals that are remanded or reversed: the Act allows a refund in certain cases where a matter is sent back or the decision is reversed.
Settling can get your fee back
If your case settles, especially through court-annexed mediation, ask the court to order a refund of the court fee under Section 16. This is a real benefit of settling that many parties overlook.
State court-fee laws can vary the refund rules, so check the Act of the state where you filed.
07Where Claw fits
Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.
Court fees are only the entry step; the real work is following the case afterwards. Once a matter is filed, it runs through registration, service, evidence and arguments over many dates. If your matter escalates to a suit or an appeal, you can create a FREE Claw account to track it across 9,102 courts, benches and forums, with hearing and order alerts so a listing or an order is never missed. You can also search 30 crore+ judgments, with Supreme Court decisions from 1950 and High Court decisions from 1990, to see how courts have treated valuation and court-fee disputes on similar facts, with results in under 5 seconds. Claw does not use your case documents to train its AI models.
Create a FREE Claw account to track your matter and every hearing, and use case search across Indian courts to find how courts decided similar valuation and fee questions.
08Sources and further reading
- Court Fees Act, 1870 (bare Act and Schedules): indiacode.nic.in
- Supreme Court on ad valorem fees in money suits: livelaw.in
- Commentary on court-fee computation: advocatekhoj.com
- Claw: clawlaw.in
This page is general information, not legal advice. Court fees differ by state and by the exact relief sought, so confirm your state's Act and the current rates before you file.
09Frequently asked questions
How are court fees calculated in India?
Court fees are set by the Court Fees Act, 1870 and each state's court-fee law. For most money and property cases the fee is ad valorem, a percentage of the value of the claim under Schedule I. For many other matters it is a fixed flat amount under Schedule II. You work out the value, then apply the rate.
How is the value of a suit decided for court fees?
Under Section 7 of the Court Fees Act, a money suit is valued at the amount claimed, a property suit usually at the market value, and certain declaratory or injunction reliefs under Section 7(iv) at the plaintiff's own stated valuation. The correct valuation decides the fee.
What happens if I pay less court fee than required?
The plaint is treated as insufficiently stamped. The court gives you time to pay the deficit, and if you do not make it good, the plaint can be rejected under Order 7 Rule 11 of the CPC. A rejection is not a decision on the merits and can create a limitation problem, so pay the correct fee at filing.
Can I get a refund of court fees?
Yes, in some cases. Where a case is settled through mediation or other alternative dispute resolution under Section 89 CPC, courts routinely order a full refund of the court fee under Section 16 of the Court Fees Act. Refunds can also apply where an appeal is remanded or reversed. State rules vary, so check your state Act.
Are court fees the same across India?
No. Court fees are governed by both the central Act and state laws, and the rates, maximum fees and refund rules differ from state to state. Use the court-fee law of the state where the case is filed rather than a general figure.