Business Laws · The Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881

Presentment of Instruments under the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881

Updated 1 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Presentment is the holder showing a negotiable instrument to the right person and asking for acceptance or payment. Acceptance is sought from the drawee of a bill. Payment is sought from the maker, acceptor or drawee bank. Answer by stating who presents, to whom, when, where, and the effect of failing to present.

Understand Presentment of Instruments

A negotiable instrument is a promise or order to pay money. The person who must pay will not pay until the holder asks. That formal request, made by showing the instrument, is presentment. There are two kinds: presentment for acceptance and presentment for payment.

Presentment for acceptance applies only to bills of exchange. A bill is an order from the drawer to the drawee. The drawee is not liable until he accepts by signing. So the holder shows the bill to the drawee and asks for acceptance. It is compulsory for a bill payable after sight, because the due date is counted from the day of acceptance or sight. It is also compulsory where the bill itself says it must be presented for acceptance. A bill payable on demand or on a fixed date need not be presented for acceptance unless the bill requires it. Promissory notes and cheques are never presented for acceptance. A promissory note payable a stated period after sight must be presented to the maker for sight (Section 61) within a reasonable time, so that its maturity can be fixed. If the holder fails to do this, the other parties are discharged from liability to that holder.

Presentment for payment applies to all three instruments. A promissory note goes to the maker. A bill goes to the acceptor, or to the drawee if the bill is not accepted. A cheque goes to the drawee bank. The holder, or someone authorised by the holder, must present. If the holder does not present, the other parties, such as the drawer and endorsers, are not liable to that holder. The maker or acceptor, as the principal debtor, is generally not freed by non-presentment alone.

Time and place matter. An instrument payable on demand must be presented within a reasonable time. A cheque is also valid for three months from its date under the banking rule. An instrument with a fixed due date is presented on the day it matures. For bills and notes not payable on demand or at sight, three days of grace are added to the due date. If the last day of grace is a public holiday, the instrument falls due on the preceding business day. If it is an emergency holiday declared under the Act, the instrument falls due on the next day (Section 25). Presentment must be in business hours, and for banks, within banking hours. If the instrument names a place, present there. If not, present at the business place or residence of the person who must pay.

Presentment is not always necessary. The law excuses it when it is impossible or pointless. Examples are the payer intentionally preventing it, the payer not attending the named place during business hours, a fictitious drawee, a payer who cannot be found after reasonable search, a waiver by the party to be charged, and a drawer who had no reason to believe the instrument would be paid when presented. Delay is also excused if it was caused by circumstances beyond the holder's control, and the holder presented with reasonable diligence afterwards.

Key rules to remember

Presentment for acceptance: when compulsory: Needed for: (1) bill payable after sight, (2) bill that expressly requires acceptance. Not applicable to promissory notes or cheques.; A bill payable on demand or on a fixed date does not need it unless the bill says so.
Presentment of a note payable after sight (Section 61): Note payable after sight ⇒ present to the maker for sight within a reasonable time; This fixes the maturity. If the holder fails to do it, the other parties are discharged from liability to that holder.
Presentment for payment: who presents to whom: Note → maker | Bill → acceptor (or drawee) | Cheque → drawee bank; Presentment is made by the holder or a person authorised on the holder's behalf.
Effect of non-presentment for payment (Section 64): No presentment ⇒ other parties not liable to that holder; The maker or acceptor, as principal debtor, is not freed by this rule alone.
Due date of a time instrument: Due date = date of instrument (or acceptance/sight) + stated period + 3 days of grace; No grace on instruments payable on demand or at sight. Count from the day after the starting date.
Public and emergency holiday rule (Section 25): Last day of grace is a public holiday ⇒ due on the preceding business day | Emergency holiday declared under the Act ⇒ due on the next day; Apply this after adding grace days.
Time for demand instruments: Payable on demand ⇒ present within a reasonable time; A cheque is valid for three months from its date under the banking rule.
Hours and place: Business hours (banking hours for banks); at the named place, else at the payer's business place or residence; If the payer cannot be located, presentment excuses apply.
Effect of delay in presenting a cheque: Unreasonable delay + bank fails + drawer suffers actual damage ⇒ drawer discharged to the extent of that damage; The drawer is discharged only to the extent of actual damage, not fully.
When presentment is unnecessary (Section 76): Intentional prevention | payer does not attend the named place during business hours | fictitious drawee | payer not found after reasonable search | waiver | drawer had no reason to believe the instrument would be paid when presented; Learn these as a list. Examiners ask for any three or four.

How to solve Presentment of Instruments questions

Use this order for any presentment question, whether it is a theory question or a case study.

1Identify the instrument: promissory note, bill of exchange or cheque. This decides whether acceptance is even possible.
2Identify the type of presentment asked: for acceptance, for payment, or both.
3Name the right parties: the holder (or authorised agent) presents, and say to whom (maker, acceptor, drawee or drawee bank).
4Fix the time. For a time instrument, compute the due date with grace days and adjust for any public or emergency holiday. For a demand instrument, apply the reasonable time rule.
5Check place and hours: the named place, else the payer's business place or residence, within business or banking hours.
6Check for an excuse: prevention, absence from the named place, a fictitious drawee, waiver, or delay beyond the holder's control.
7State the effect: if presentment was required and not made, other parties are not liable to the holder. If excused, the liability continues.
8Write a one-line conclusion that answers the exact question asked.

Quickest way: Provision-Facts-Conclusion in four lines

When to use it: Use this for 4-5 mark case questions and short notes on presentment, when you have limited time.

Line 1, Provision: state the rule in one sentence, for example that a bill payable after sight must be presented for acceptance.
Line 2, Facts: apply it using the names and dates in the question. Show any due-date calculation in one line.
Line 3, Exception: say whether any excuse or unnecessary-presentment ground applies, or clearly say none does.
Line 4, Conclusion: state who is liable and who is discharged.
Memory aid for who presents to whom: Note-Maker, Bill-Acceptor, Cheque-Bank (N-M, B-A, C-B).
Memory aid for unnecessary presentment: P-A-F-N-W-D, meaning Prevented, Absent (payer does not attend the named place during business hours), Fictitious drawee, Not found, Waived, Drawer had no reason to believe the instrument would be paid.

Common mistakes in Presentment of Instruments

Saying every bill of exchange must be presented for acceptance.
Students remember that a bill has a drawee and assume acceptance is always compulsory.
Fix: Acceptance is compulsory only for bills payable after sight or bills that expressly require it. Bills on demand or on a fixed date do not need it unless the bill says so.
Treating a cheque or promissory note as needing presentment for acceptance.
Students mix up the drawee of a bill with the drawee bank on a cheque, or the maker of a note with an acceptor.
Fix: Only bills are accepted. A note is presented to the maker for payment, and a cheque to the bank for payment. A note payable after sight is presented to the maker for sight within a reasonable time (Section 61) to fix its maturity. Failure to do so discharges the other parties.
Forgetting the three days of grace when computing the due date.
Students stop at the stated period, such as 30 days.
Fix: Add three days for time instruments. Do not add them for instruments payable on demand or at sight.
Saying that non-presentment frees the maker or acceptor.
Students read that parties are not liable and apply it to everyone.
Fix: The rule protects the other parties, such as the drawer and endorsers. The maker or acceptor is the principal debtor and is generally not freed by non-presentment alone.
Writing that a drawer is fully discharged when a cheque is presented late.
Students remember that delay helps the drawer and overstate it.
Fix: The drawer is discharged only to the extent of actual damage, for example when the bank fails after unreasonable delay. If there is no damage, there is no discharge.
Listing unnecessary-presentment grounds without applying them to the facts.
Students memorise the list and skip the case analysis.
Fix: Quote the ground and tie it to the fact, for example that the drawee was fictitious. Then state the conclusion.

Worked examples

Example 1

A bill of exchange dated 1 June 2024 is payable 30 days after date. The acceptor is Mohan. On which date must the holder present it for payment, and what happens if the holder does not present it?

Show the solution

The bill is a time instrument payable a fixed period after date, so the stated period is counted from the day after the date of the bill.
30 days after 1 June 2024 is 1 July 2024, since June has 30 days.
Add three days of grace: 1 July + 3 days = 4 July 2024.
4 July 2024 is a Thursday. It is not a public holiday, so no holiday adjustment is needed.
The holder must present the bill to Mohan for payment on 4 July 2024, during business hours, at the place named in the bill. If no place is named, he presents at Mohan's business place or residence.
If the holder fails to present, the drawer and endorsers are not liable to that holder. Mohan, as acceptor and principal debtor, is generally not freed by this alone.

Answer: The due date is 4 July 2024, when the bill must be presented to the acceptor. If the holder does not present it, the drawer and endorsers are discharged from liability to the holder, but the acceptor is generally not discharged.

Example 2

Ravi draws a cheque in favour of Seema and gives it to her. Seema does not present the cheque for a long time. In the meantime Ravi's bank fails, and Ravi suffers loss on his balance. Seema now claims the full amount from Ravi. Advise Ravi.

Show the solution

Provision: a cheque is payable on demand, so it must be presented to the drawee bank within a reasonable time of issue.
Facts: Seema delayed presenting it for a long time. The bank has since failed, and Ravi has suffered actual loss because of the delay.
Rule: if the holder does not present a cheque within a reasonable time and the drawer suffers actual damage from the delay, the drawer is discharged to the extent of that damage.
Application: the discharge is limited to Ravi's actual damage. He is not freed from the whole debt unless the damage equals the whole amount.
Exception check: no ground that makes presentment unnecessary is shown, and no delay beyond Seema's control is mentioned, so the delay is not excused.

Answer: Ravi is discharged only to the extent of the actual damage caused by Seema's unreasonable delay. Seema cannot claim that part. She can claim the remainder, if any, from Ravi.

Exam tips

Start every answer by naming the instrument. Many marks are lost by presenting a cheque for acceptance or a note to a drawee.
If the question gives dates, always show the due-date calculation line by line, including grace days and any holiday adjustment. Step marks are given for the working.
Learn the unnecessary-presentment list as a short acronym and write at least four grounds with a one-line explanation each.
In case questions, write who is discharged and who remains liable. The conclusion line is where most marks are given.
Sections 25, 61, 64 and 76 are safe to quote. For other rules, state them in plain words unless you are sure of the section number.

Practice questions from The Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881

Presentment of Instruments: frequently asked questions

What is presentment of a cheque?

It is the holder showing the cheque to the drawee bank and asking for payment. The holder, or an authorised agent, must do this in banking hours. A cheque is payable on demand, so it must be presented within a reasonable time, and under the banking rule it is valid for three months.

Which instruments need presentment for acceptance?

Only bills of exchange. It is compulsory for a bill payable after sight, and for a bill that expressly requires it. Promissory notes and cheques are not presented for acceptance.

What happens if the holder does not present an instrument for payment?

Under Section 64, the other parties to the instrument, such as the drawer and endorsers, are not liable to that holder. The maker or acceptor, as the principal debtor, is generally not freed by that alone.

When is presentment for payment not necessary?

It is excused when the payer intentionally prevents it, does not attend the named place during business hours, is a fictitious drawee, cannot be found after reasonable search, or when the party to be charged waives it. It is also excused when the drawer had no reason to believe the instrument would be paid when presented. Delay beyond the holder's control is excused too.

Are grace days added to a cheque?

No. Grace days apply to time bills and notes, not to instruments payable on demand or at sight. A cheque is payable on demand, so it has no grace days.