Section 61 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.
Section 61 sets how long warehoused goods may stay in a bonded warehouse. Capital goods and other goods for hundred per cent export oriented undertakings and similar units, and for warehouses where manufacture is permitted, stay until clearance or consumption. All other goods stay for one year from the section 60 order, extendable by up to one year at a time. After ninety days, interest is payable on those other goods.
This article follows the Customs Act, 1962 as per the text on the CBIC portal updated to 30 March 2022. Later Finance Acts must be checked for changes to this section before you act on it.
Goods for hundred per cent export oriented undertakings, electronic hardware technology park units, software technology park units and warehouses where manufacture is permitted under section 65 may stay until clearance or consumption. Any other goods may stay one year from the section 60(1) order, extendable by the Commissioner by not more than one year at a time. For those goods, interest is payable from the end of ninety days at the rate fixed under section 47. Sections 62 and 63 are printed as omitted.
Section 61(1): the periods
Section 61 was substituted w.e.f. 14-5-2016 by section 128 of the Finance Act, 2016 (28 of 2016), as the footnote prints. The earlier wording is printed in the footnote, with different periods and a different structure, but it is not the rule.
Any warehoused goods may remain in the warehouse in which they are deposited, or in any warehouse to which they may be removed, as follows.
| Clause | Goods | How long they may remain |
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Capital goods intended for use in any hundred per cent export oriented undertaking, electronic hardware technology park unit, software technology park unit, or any warehouse wherein manufacture or other operations have been permitted under section 65 | Till their clearance from the warehouse |
| (b) | Goods other than capital goods intended for use in the same undertakings, units or warehouses | Till their consumption or clearance from the warehouse |
| (c) | Any other goods | Till the expiry of one year from the date on which the proper officer has made an order under sub-section (1) of section 60 |
The two provisos to clause (c)
- Extension. In the case of goods under clause (c), the Principal Commissioner of Customs or Commissioner of Customs may, on sufficient cause being shown, extend the period for which the goods may remain in the warehouse by not more than one year at a time.
- Shortening for deteriorating goods. Where such goods are likely to deteriorate, the period in the first proviso may be reduced by the Commissioner to such shorter period as he may deem fit.
So the one-year base can be extended in steps of up to one year each, but only on sufficient cause, and can be cut short for goods likely to deteriorate. The text prints no ceiling on the number of extensions.
How the sub-section connects to section 65
Clauses (a) and (b) mention warehouses where manufacture or other operations have been permitted under section 65. That section has its own post on our site, which explains it: Customs bonded manufacturing under section 65 (MOOWR). See also our post on MOOWR and duty deferment without an export obligation. Section 61 only says that goods in such a warehouse may remain until consumption or clearance.
Section 61(2): interest after ninety days
Where warehoused goods specified in clause (c) of sub-section (1) remain in a warehouse beyond a period of ninety days from the date on which the proper officer made an order under section 60(1), interest is payable:
- at such rate as may be fixed by the Central Government under section 47;
- on the amount of duty payable at the time of clearance of the goods; and
- for the period from the expiry of the ninety days till the date of payment of duty on the warehoused goods.
The rate is not in section 61. It is "fixed by the Central Government under section 47", and our article on section 47 shows the range that section prints for interest. This article states no rate.
Note the arithmetic. The warehousing period for clause (c) goods is one year, but interest starts at ninety days. So a clause (c) importer who keeps goods in the warehouse for, say, six months pays interest on the duty for the period after the ninety days until the duty is paid, even though the goods are within their one-year period.
The three provisos to sub-section (2)
If the Board considers it necessary in the public interest, it may:
- (a) Waive. By order, and under circumstances of an exceptional nature to be specified in the order, waive the whole or any part of the interest payable in respect of any warehoused goods.
- (b) Exclude a class. By notification in the Official Gazette, specify the class of goods in respect of which no interest shall be charged.
- (c) Start interest earlier. By notification in the Official Gazette, specify the class of goods in respect of which interest shall be chargeable from the date on which the proper officer made the section 60(1) order.
Provisos (b) and (c) depend on notifications, which the text consulted does not show. Check current notifications before relying on either.
The Explanation
The Explanation defines three terms for the section:
- "electronic hardware technology park unit" means a unit established under the Electronic Hardware Technology Park Scheme notified by the Government of India;
- "hundred per cent export oriented undertaking" has the same meaning as in the Central Excise Act, 1944 (1 of 1944); and
- "software technology park unit" means a unit established under the Software Technology Park Scheme notified by the Government of India.
Sections 62 and 63: omitted
Sections 62 and 63 are printed as omitted. The footnotes say each was omitted w.e.f. 14-5-2016 by section 129 of the Finance Act, 2016. The old text printed in the footnotes is not the rule.
How the period fits with the rest of Chapter IX
The clock starts at the order under section 60(1); see our article on sections 59 and 60. The bond under section 59 binds the importer to pay duties and interest payable under section 61(2). If a licence is cancelled, section 58B(4) demands removal of goods within seven days; see our article on sections 58A and 58B. The owner's rights to deal with goods in the warehouse are in sections 64 to 67.
A worked example
Indus Furnishings deposits imported fittings in a bonded warehouse on a section 60(1) order dated 1 April. These are clause (c) goods, so the base period is one year, to 31 March of the next year. By 30 June, ninety days have passed, and interest becomes payable on the duty payable at clearance, at the rate fixed under section 47, from the end of the ninety days until the duty is paid. In month ten, Indus Furnishings shows sufficient cause and the Commissioner extends the period by one year. Compare Tek Circuits, which imports capital goods for a software technology park unit. Its goods are within clause (a): they may remain until clearance from the warehouse, and the ninety-day interest in sub-section (2) applies only to clause (c) goods.
Practical points
- Identify your clause. (a), (b) and (c) carry different periods.
- Diarise two dates for clause (c) goods. The ninety-day interest start and the one-year expiry both run from the section 60(1) order.
- Apply for extension with a reasoned case. Extension needs sufficient cause and is by not more than one year at a time.
- Check notifications. Interest relief for a class of goods, or earlier interest, depends on notification.
- Plan clearance to limit interest. Interest runs until the duty is paid.
Need help managing warehoused goods?
If you hold goods in a bonded warehouse and want to plan periods, extensions and clearance to manage interest, see our private bonded warehouse licence service. If you are still deciding whether to hold stock under bond at all, our team can walk you through the licence for a private bonded warehouse before you apply.
Key takeaways
- Capital goods for specified units and warehouses may remain until clearance; other goods for them until consumption or clearance.
- All other goods may remain one year from the section 60(1) order, extendable by not more than one year at a time on sufficient cause.
- The period can be reduced for goods likely to deteriorate.
- For clause (c) goods, interest is payable from the end of ninety days at the rate fixed under section 47.
- The Board may waive interest, exclude a class or start interest earlier by order or notification.
- Sections 62 and 63 are printed as omitted.
Read next
- Sections 59 and 60: warehousing bond and permission to deposit goods
- Sections 58A and 58B: special warehouses and cancellation of licence
- Section 47: clearance of goods for home consumption
- Customs bonded warehouse: Sections 57 to 73
Disclaimer: Based on the Customs Act, 1962 as published on the CBIC Tax Information Portal, updated to 30 March 2022 (amended up to the Finance Act, 2022), as consulted on 2 October 2026. Finance Acts of 2023 and later, and the current rules, regulations and notifications, should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.