Skip to content
Wednesday, 11 November 2026 Judgments, law jobs and study notes, written by a practising advocate
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 · Chapter XVIII: Of Offences Relating To Documents And To Property Marks

Section 347 BNS: Counterfeiting a property mark

Corresponding IPC
Section 483, 484 IPC
Punishment
(1) Imprisonment up to 2 years, or fine, or both; (2) imprisonment up to 3 years, and fine
Note
IPC 483 and 484 combined as two subsections.

Classification of offence

SectionCognizable?Bailable?Triable by
347(1)Non-cognizableBailableAny Magistrate
347(2)Non-cognizableBailableMagistrate of the first class

As per the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.

Bare Act text

(1) Whoever counterfeits any property mark used by any other person shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.

(2) Whoever counterfeits any property mark used by a public servant, or any mark used by a public servant to denote that any property has been manufactured by a particular person or at a particular time or place, or that the property is of a particular quality or has passed through a particular office, or that it is entitled to any exemption, or uses as genuine any such mark knowing the same to be counterfeit, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Text as enacted in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act No. 45 of 2023), in force from 1 July 2024. Source: India Code, Government of India.

In simple words

Sub-section (1) punishes counterfeiting a property mark used by another person. Sub-section (2) punishes counterfeiting a public servant's mark, or knowingly using such a counterfeit as genuine, with a higher penalty.

Chapter XVIII: Of Offences Relating To Documents And To Property Marks

  1. 335 Making a false document
  2. 336 Forgery
  3. 337 Forgery of record of Court or of public register, etc
  4. 338 Forgery of valuable security, will, etc
  5. 339 Having possession of document described in section 337 or section 338, knowing it to be forged and intending to use it as genuine
  6. 340 Forged document or electronic record and using it as genuine
  7. 341 Making or possessing counterfeit seal, etc., with intent to commit forgery punishable under section 338
  8. 342 Counterfeiting device or mark used for authenticating documents described in section 338, or possessing counterfeit marked material
  9. 343 Fraudulent cancellation, destruction, etc., of will, authority to adopt, or valuable security
  10. 344 Falsification of accounts
  11. 345 Property mark
  12. 346 Tampering with property mark with intent to cause injury
  13. 347 Counterfeiting a property mark
  14. 348 Making or possession of any instrument for counterfeiting a property mark
  15. 349 Selling goods marked with a counterfeit property mark
  16. 350 Making a false mark upon any receptacle containing goods
ShareWhatsAppTelegramLinkedInX