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Indian Contract Act, 1872 · Chapter IV: Of the Performance of Contracts · Time and place for performance

Section 46: Time for performance of promise, when no application is to be made and no time is specified

In plain words

If the promisor is to perform without being asked and no time is fixed, the promise must be performed within a reasonable time. What is reasonable depends on the facts of each case.

A simplified explanation, prepared with AI assistance from the official text below and checked automatically against it for numbers and cross-references. The official text is the law and prevails over this summary. Not legal advice.

Official text

Where, by the contract, a promisor is to perform his promise without application by the promisee, and no time for performance is specified, the engagement must be performed within a reasonable time.

Explanation.—The question "what is a reasonable time" is, in each particular case, a question of fact.

Source: India Code (indiacode.gov.in), the consolidated text published by the Legislative Department, Government of India. Text as updated on India Code on 15 October 2026. Words in square brackets [ ] were inserted or substituted by later amending Acts, and *** marks words omitted by an amendment. The amendment footnotes are not reproduced here. Official text on India Code.

Supreme Court judgments citing the section 46