FEMA Act 1999 / Section 17

Section 17 FEMA Act 1999 - Appeal to Special Director (Appeals)

Section 17 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 provides a statutory appeal to the Special Director (Appeals) against specified adjudication orders. This guide explains who may appeal, the 45-day limitation period, Form I requirements, hearing procedure and the powers available in appeal.

Updated: 27 September 2026

At a glance: A person aggrieved by an order of an Adjudicating Authority who is an Assistant Director of Enforcement or Deputy Director of Enforcement may appeal to the Special Director (Appeals). The appeal is ordinarily due within 45 days from receipt of the order. The prescribed rules require Form I, filing in triplicate, three copies of the order appealed against and a fee of Rs. 5,000. A delayed appeal may be entertained where sufficient cause is shown.

What Section 17 of FEMA provides

Section 17 creates an appellate remedy within the FEMA adjudication framework. The Central Government may appoint one or more Special Directors (Appeals) and specify the matters and places over which each such appellate authority may exercise jurisdiction.

The provision should be read with the Foreign Exchange Management (Adjudication Proceedings and Appeal) Rules, 2000, particularly Rules 5 to 9. Those rules prescribe the form of appeal, filing requirements, hearing procedure, contents of the appellate order, representation and service of notices.

Who can appeal under Section 17?

Under Section 17(2), the remedy is available to a person aggrieved by an order made by an Adjudicating Authority where that authority is an Assistant Director of Enforcement or a Deputy Director of Enforcement.

This jurisdictional distinction is important. Section 19 separately governs appeals to the Appellate Tribunal, including appeals from orders of the Special Director (Appeals) and appeals from adjudication orders other than those covered by Section 17.

Provision Section 17, Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999
Appellate authority Special Director (Appeals)
Eligible order Order of an Adjudicating Authority who is an Assistant Director of Enforcement or Deputy Director of Enforcement
Normal limitation 45 days from the date the aggrieved person receives the copy of the order
Prescribed form Form I under Rule 5 of the Foreign Exchange Management (Adjudication Proceedings and Appeal) Rules, 2000
Prescribed fee Rs. 5,000 under Rule 5

Time limit for appeal and condonation of delay

Section 17(3) prescribes a period of 45 days from the date on which the aggrieved person receives a copy of the adjudication order. The Special Director (Appeals) may entertain an appeal after that period if satisfied that there was sufficient cause for not filing it within time.

Where the appeal is filed after 45 days, Rule 5 requires a separate petition in triplicate, duly verified and supported by the documents relied upon, explaining the cause that prevented filing within the prescribed period.

Practical point: Keep reliable proof of the date on which the adjudication order was received. The limitation period under Section 17(3) runs from receipt of the copy of the order, not merely from the date printed on the order.

Form I, fee and filing requirements

Rule 5 of the 2000 Rules prescribes the manner in which an appeal under Section 17 is presented. Before filing, the appellant should check the current jurisdiction and filing instructions of the competent Special Director (Appeals).

  1. Use Form I and have it signed by the applicant.
  2. File the appeal in triplicate.
  3. Attach three copies of the order appealed against.
  4. Pay the prescribed Rs. 5,000 fee in the manner stated in Rule 5 and applicable filing instructions.
  5. State the grounds of objection concisely under distinct heads and number them consecutively.
  6. Specify the address for service and the date on which the order appealed against was served.
  7. If the appeal is late, accompany it with the prescribed verified delay petition and supporting documents.

Procedure before the Special Director (Appeals)

Under Rule 6, after receiving the appeal, the Special Director (Appeals) sends a copy of the appeal and the impugned order to the Director of Enforcement and fixes a date for hearing. The applicant and the presenting officer of the Directorate of Enforcement are heard. The Rules also provide for decision on the merits where a party does not appear when the matter is called.

The current text of Rule 6 states that the appeal may be decided on the merits within 180 days from the date of the appeal. Rule 7 requires the appellate order to be in writing, briefly state the grounds for the decision and be signed by the Special Director (Appeals).

Representation by lawyer or chartered accountant

Rule 8 permits an applicant who has filed an appeal under Section 17 to appoint a legal practitioner or a chartered accountant to appear, plead and act on the applicant's behalf before the Special Director (Appeals).

Powers of the Special Director (Appeals)

After giving the parties an opportunity of being heard, Section 17(4) authorises the Special Director (Appeals) to confirm, modify or set aside the order appealed against. A copy of the appellate order must be sent to the parties and to the concerned Adjudicating Authority.

Section 17(6) also confers the same civil-court powers that Section 28(2) confers on the Appellate Tribunal. The enacted text further deems proceedings before the Special Director (Appeals) to be judicial proceedings for the purposes specified in that sub-section and deems the authority to be a civil court for the specified procedural purposes.

Current-code note: The current official text of FEMA available on India Code continues to print the references in Section 17(6) to Sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and Sections 345 and 346 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. This page preserves the statutory wording rather than silently substituting provisions from later criminal codes.

Section 17 - Appeal to Special Director (Appeals)

(1) The Central Government shall, by notification, appoint one or more Special Directors (Appeals) to hear appeals against the orders of the Adjudicating Authorities under this section and shall also specify in the said notification the matter and places in relation to which the Special Director (Appeals) may exercise jurisdiction.

(2) Any person aggrieved by an order made by the Adjudicating Authority, being an Assistant Director of Enforcement or a Deputy Director of Enforcement, may prefer an appeal to the Special Director (Appeals).

(3) Every appeal under sub-section (1) shall be filed within forty-five days from the date on which the copy of the order made by the Adjudicating Authority is received by the aggrieved person and it shall be in such form, verified in such manner and be accompanied by such fee as may be prescribed.

Provided that the Special Director (Appeals) may entertain an appeal after the expiry of the said period of forty-five days, if he is satisfied that there was sufficient cause for not filing it within that period.

(4) On receipt of an appeal under sub-section (1), the Special Director (Appeals) may, after giving the parties to the appeal an opportunity of being heard, pass such order thereon as he thinks fit confirming, modifying or setting aside the order appealed against.

(5) The Special Director (Appeals) shall send a copy of every order made by him to the parties to appeal and to the concerned Adjudicating Authority.

(6) The Special Director (Appeals) shall have the same powers of a civil court which are conferred on the Appellate Tribunal under sub-section (2) of section 28 and -

(a) all proceedings before him shall be deemed to be judicial proceedings within the meaning of sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860);

(b) shall be deemed to be a civil court for the purposes of sections 345 and 346 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974).

What happens after an order under Section 17?

Section 19 provides the next appellate remedy. Subject to that provision, a person aggrieved by an order of the Special Director (Appeals) may prefer an appeal to the Appellate Tribunal. Section 19 contains its own limitation, fee and penalty-deposit framework and should be checked separately before filing.

See also: Section 19 - Appeal to Appellate Tribunal.

Official legal resources

For the current statutory text, rules, notifications and institutional information, use the official sources below. Filing requirements and jurisdictional arrangements should be checked again at the time of filing.

This article is a general legal information resource. Procedure, jurisdiction and filing practice may depend on the order, authority and applicable notification in a particular case.