Section 473 — Contravention of order made under section 247. Successor to s.275A of the 1961 Act.
Section 473 is in Chapter XXII — Offences and Prosecutions, which runs from section 473 to section 498.
A single sentence creating an offence: whoever contravenes an order referred to in section 247(4) is punishable with simple imprisonment up to two years and with fine. Act No. 4 of 2026, with effect from 1 April 2026, substituted both the heading and the punishment, which previously read 'rigorous imprisonment which may extend to two years and shall also be liable to fine'.
It gives criminal force to a restraint order made in the course of a search under section 247(4), so that disobeying it is an offence rather than merely a procedural default.
| What | Figure | The condition on it | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Punishment for contravening a section 247(4) order | Simple imprisonment up to two years, and fine | Two years is the maximum; substituted by Act No. 4 of 2026 with effect from 1 April 2026 for 'rigorous imprisonment which may extend to two years and shall also be liable to fine' | S.473 |
The offence attaches to contravention of the order itself, so the question is whether an order under section 247(4) was in force and was disobeyed, not whether any tax was ultimately found due. From 1 April 2026 the imprisonment is simple rather than rigorous, though the two-year maximum is unchanged and a fine accompanies it.
An order referred to in section 247(4) — a restraint order made in the course of a search — is in force against a person, and he deals with what it covers anyway. Section 473 makes the contravention itself the offence, punishable with simple imprisonment up to two years and with fine, and whether any tax is ultimately found due on assessment is beside the point. Two years is the maximum and the section prescribes no minimum. Since 1 April 2026 the imprisonment is simple, Act No. 4 of 2026 having substituted that for the earlier 'rigorous imprisonment which may extend to two years'; the two-year ceiling and the fine are unchanged.
Not in any notice, return or assessment, but in a criminal prosecution before a court, launched on the contravention of an order referred to in section 247(4) during a search. The section names no form and no authority — only the offence and its punishment.
Whoever contravenes any order referred to in section 247(4) shall be punishable with simple imprisonment up to two years and with fine.
See the full 1961 to 2025 concordance.
See the circulars index.