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Economic, Commercial and Intellectual Property Laws · Prevention of Money Laundering

Attachment of Property under PMLA 2002: Section 5 Explained

Updated 11 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Under PMLA 2002, the Director or an officer not below Deputy Director may provisionally attach proceeds of crime for up to 180 days under section 5, if he records reasons in writing. He must send the order to the Adjudicating Authority at once and file a complaint within 30 days.

Understand Attachment, Adjudication and Confiscation

Money-laundering law aims to take away the proceeds of crime, not only to punish the offender. If the property is moved or hidden, a later confiscation order is useless. So the Act lets the authorities freeze the property early and then tests that step before an independent body.

The process runs in stages. First, an officer provisionally attaches property under section 5. Next, a copy of the order and the supporting material goes to the Adjudicating Authority in a sealed envelope. Then a complaint is filed before that authority within 30 days. The authority decides whether the attachment should continue. Final confiscation follows only after that process, and it is not decided by the attaching officer alone.

Section 5(1) has two conditions. The officer must have reason to believe, on the basis of material in his possession, that (a) a person possesses proceeds of crime and (b) those proceeds are likely to be concealed, transferred or dealt with in a way that may frustrate confiscation proceedings. The reasons must be recorded in writing. This is a safeguard, and examiners like it.

There is also a gate before attachment. Under the first proviso, no attachment order can be made unless, for the scheduled offence, a report has been forwarded to a Magistrate under section 173 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, or a complaint has been filed before a Magistrate or court for cognizance, or a similar report or complaint exists under the corresponding law of another country. The second proviso is an exception. Property of any person may be attached if the officer has recorded reason to believe that non-attachment is likely to frustrate proceedings under the Act.

Search and seizure under section 17 supports this. The Director, or an officer not below Deputy Director authorised by him, may authorise a subordinate to enter, search, seize and examine on oath. If seizure is not practicable, the property can be frozen under section 17(1A). Section 60 extends the scheme across borders, using letters of request to and from contracting States.

Key rules to remember

Authority to attach (s.5(1))
Director or officer not below Deputy Director authorised by the Director
Reasons for belief must be recorded in writing, on the basis of material in his possession.
Two grounds for provisional attachment
(a) person in possession of proceeds of crime AND (b) likely to be concealed, transferred or dealt with so as to frustrate confiscation proceedings
Both conditions must be met.
Period of provisional attachment
Not exceeding 180 days from the date of the order
Days when the High Court stays the proceedings are excluded, and a further period up to 30 days from the vacation of the stay is counted.
Forwarding to Adjudicating Authority (s.5(2))
Immediately after attachment, in a sealed envelope, with the material
Done by the Director or officer not below Deputy Director.
Complaint after attachment (s.5(5))
Within 30 days of attachment, file a complaint stating facts before the Adjudicating Authority
Different from the 180-day life of the order.
When attachment ceases (s.5(3))
On expiry of the period in s.5(1) or on the date of an order under s.8(3), whichever is earlier
Attachment does not outlast the earlier of the two events.
Immovable property enjoyment (s.5(4))
Person interested may continue to enjoy attached immovable property
Person interested includes all persons claiming or entitled to claim any interest.
Retention after seizure or freezing (s.17(4))
Apply to Adjudicating Authority within 30 days of seizure or freezing
Seeks retention of seized record or property, or continuation of the freezing order.

How to solve Attachment, Adjudication and Confiscation questions

Use this order for any problem or theory question on attachment, search and confiscation under PMLA.

  1. 1Identify the stage: attachment (s.5), search and seizure (s.17), freezing (s.17(1A)), adjudication, or cross-border action (s.60).
  2. 2Name the officer and check rank. For s.5 and s.17 it is the Director or an officer not below Deputy Director authorised by him.
  3. 3Check the grounds: reason to believe on material in possession, reasons recorded in writing, and for s.5 both the possession and the likely-frustration conditions.
  4. 4Check the gate: has a report been forwarded under section 173 CrPC 1973 or a complaint filed for the scheduled offence? If not, test the second proviso.
  5. 5Apply the time limits: 180 days for the attachment order, 30 days for the complaint, 30 days for a s.17(4) application.
  6. 6Check the procedure: copy of order and material sent to the Adjudicating Authority in a sealed envelope immediately.
  7. 7State the effect and end date, including s.5(3) and the right to enjoy immovable property under s.5(4).
  8. 8Write a clear conclusion: valid or invalid attachment, and what the officer must do next.

Quickest way: Rank, reason, gate, clock

When to use it: Use for short fact-based questions where you must say whether an attachment or seizure is valid.

  1. Rank: Director or not below Deputy Director authorised.
  2. Reason: belief recorded in writing, on material.
  3. Gate: s.173 CrPC report or complaint exists, or second proviso applies.
  4. Clock: 180 days order, 30 days complaint or application.
  5. Conclude in one line with the section number.

Common mistakes in Attachment, Adjudication and Confiscation

  • Mixing up the 180-day and 30-day periods in section 5.

    Both periods appear in one section and both start from the attachment.

    Fix: Remember: 180 days is how long the order lasts. 30 days is the deadline to file the complaint before the Adjudicating Authority.

  • Saying any officer can attach property.

    Students remember 'officer' but not the rank.

    Fix: Write: Director or an officer not below the rank of Deputy Director authorised by the Director.

  • Omitting the recorded reasons in writing.

    It feels like a formality.

    Fix: State it as a mandatory safeguard in every section 5 and section 17 answer.

  • Forgetting the first proviso gate and the second proviso exception.

    Students focus only on the two grounds in section 5(1).

    Fix: Always check whether a s.173 CrPC report or complaint exists. If not, see whether the officer has recorded that non-attachment is likely to frustrate proceedings.

  • Saying the owner must leave attached immovable property.

    Attachment sounds like loss of possession.

    Fix: Cite s.5(4): the person interested is not prevented from enjoying the immovable property.

  • Treating freezing as a separate power from search and seizure.

    The sub-section number 1A looks unrelated.

    Fix: Freezing under s.17(1A) applies where seizure is not practicable. It also needs a s.17(4) application within 30 days.

Worked examples

Example 1

An officer of the Directorate, ranked Deputy Director and authorised by the Director, believes Mr. Mehta holds proceeds of crime that he is about to transfer abroad. A chargesheet in the scheduled offence has been forwarded to a Magistrate under section 173 CrPC. The officer records his reasons in writing and attaches a flat in Mumbai on 1 March. Examine the validity and the steps that follow.

Show the solution
  1. Provision: section 5(1) allows provisional attachment by the Director or an officer not below Deputy Director authorised by him.
  2. Rank: the officer is a Deputy Director and authorised, so the rank requirement is met.
  3. Grounds: Mr. Mehta is in possession of proceeds of crime and is likely to transfer them, which may frustrate confiscation proceedings. Both conditions are met, and reasons are recorded in writing.
  4. Gate: a report under section 173 CrPC has been forwarded to a Magistrate, so the first proviso is satisfied.
  5. Follow-up: the officer must immediately forward the order and material to the Adjudicating Authority in a sealed envelope (s.5(2)) and file a complaint within 30 days of attachment (s.5(5)).
  6. Duration: the order lasts up to 180 days from the date of order, unless it ends earlier on an order under s.8(3). Mr. Mehta may continue to enjoy the flat, as it is immovable property (s.5(4)).

Answer: The attachment is valid under section 5(1). The officer must send the order to the Adjudicating Authority at once, file the complaint within 30 days, and the order lasts up to 180 days unless an order under section 8(3) ends it earlier. Mr. Mehta may keep enjoying the flat.

Example 2

During a search under section 17, the authorised officer finds a locker holding records and valuables but cannot practically seize them. What can he do, and what must follow?

Show the solution
  1. Provision: section 17(1) lets the Director or officer not below Deputy Director, on recorded reason to believe, authorise a subordinate to enter, search and seize.
  2. Seizure not practicable: section 17(1A) allows an order to freeze the property. It cannot be transferred or dealt with without the prior permission of the officer, and a copy is served on the person concerned.
  3. Later seizure: if it becomes practical before confiscation, the officer may seize the frozen property.
  4. Reasons to Adjudicating Authority: under s.17(2), immediately after seizure or freezing, a copy of the reasons and material goes in a sealed envelope.
  5. Application: under s.17(4), within 30 days of the freezing, an application for continuation of the freezing order must be filed before the Adjudicating Authority.

Answer: The officer may freeze the property under section 17(1A), serve the order on the person concerned, forward the reasons and material to the Adjudicating Authority in a sealed envelope, and apply within 30 days for continuation of the freezing order.

Exam tips

  • Write the section number with each point: s.5 for attachment, s.17 for search and seizure, s.60 for contracting States.
  • Learn the numbers 180 and 30 and attach each to the correct event.
  • For case-based questions, use the ICSI pattern: provision, facts, conclusion.
  • Mention the safeguards: recorded reasons, sealed envelope, Adjudicating Authority review. They fetch marks.
  • Cite the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 only where the Act itself refers to it, as in the first proviso to section 5(1).

Practice questions from Prevention of Money Laundering

Attachment, Adjudication and Confiscation in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

Attachment, Adjudication and Confiscation: frequently asked questions

For how long can property be provisionally attached under PMLA?

For a period not exceeding 180 days from the date of the order under section 5(1). The days when the High Court stays the proceedings are excluded, and up to 30 more days from the vacation of the stay are counted.

Who can order provisional attachment under section 5?

The Director, or any other officer not below the rank of Deputy Director authorised by the Director. He must have reason to believe, based on material in his possession, and record the reasons in writing.

What happens after an officer attaches property?

He must immediately forward a copy of the order and material to the Adjudicating Authority in a sealed envelope. Within 30 days of attachment he must file a complaint stating the facts before that authority.

Can the owner still use attached immovable property?

Yes. Section 5(4) says the person interested in the enjoyment of the attached immovable property is not prevented from that enjoyment. Person interested includes anyone claiming an interest in it.

How does section 60 help in cross-border cases?

If property under an attachment, freezing or confiscation order is suspected to be in a contracting State, the Special Court may issue a letter of request to a court or authority there. The Central Government can also forward a foreign request to the Director for execution under the Act.