E-Way Bill Detention & Section 129 Penalty — Reply, Release, Appeal
Quick answer: When goods are detained under section 129 you get seven days from the MOV-07 notice to reply; penalty is 200% of tax where the owner comes forward, release is on payment or a bond with security, and appeals need a 25% pre-deposit. Most Delhi-NCR detentions are procedural — an expired bill in traffic, a Part B error — and the minor-discrepancy circulars and the intent test decide them. We respond the same day.
Last verified 4 October 2026 — rules on this page checked against the current notifications. We update it the day a rule changes.
Detention to release — the timeline that matters
| Stage | Form | Your window | What we do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interception & statement | MOV-01 / MOV-02 | Immediate | Advise the driver what to sign and what not to; get documents to the officer |
| Physical verification | MOV-04 | Same day | Ensure the report records quantity and documents accurately |
| Detention order & notice | MOV-06 / MOV-07 | 7 days to reply | Reply on facts: transport record, toll/FASTag data, invoice, payment of tax, the minor-discrepancy circulars |
| Release | Payment or MOV-08 bond + security | Before the order where goods are perishable | Secure release while preserving the right to contest |
| Penalty order | MOV-09 | Appeal within 3 months, 25% pre-deposit | APL-01 with the full evidence set |
| Confiscation (if unpaid) | MOV-10 / MOV-11 | Reply to MOV-10 | Prevent escalation; section 130 requires intent |
What we do
- Same-day response from interception: documents to the squad, driver briefed, release strategy chosen (pay or bond)
- MOV-07 reply with transport, toll and payment evidence and the applicable CBIC circulars
- Hearing before the proper officer of the intercepting state — UP, Haryana or Delhi mobile squads
- Appeal under section 107 with pre-deposit, and refund of penalty paid under protest where the appeal succeeds
- Prevention: e-way bill SOP for your dispatch desk — validity, Part B updates, extension within the window, multi-vehicle and transshipment handling
Client: A Sahibabad packaging manufacturer dispatching daily into Delhi, approximately 45 employees.
Situation: Goods detained at the border on an e-way bill that had expired that morning; MOV-07 proposed penalty at 200% of tax.
Approach: Produced the transporter's breakdown record and toll timestamps, filed the MOV-09-stage reply within the window, secured release on bond, and appealed.
Outcome: Goods released the same week; penalty reduced to the procedural-lapse level on appeal.
Client identity and certain details have been changed or withheld to protect confidentiality. Outcomes depend on individual facts and are not a guarantee of results.
Part of our GST notice-defence practice. City pages: Ghaziabad · Noida · Gurugram · Faridabad.
Talk to us before you file anything
Frequently asked questions
Goods detained on the road — what is the sequence of forms?
MOV-01 (driver's statement) → MOV-02 (order for physical verification) → MOV-04 (verification report) → MOV-06 (detention order) → MOV-07 (notice proposing penalty under section 129) → MOV-09 (penalty order). If penalty is not paid, MOV-10/MOV-11 start confiscation under section 130. Your reply window is the MOV-07 stage — seven days — and that is where the case is won or lost.
How much is the penalty under section 129?
Where the owner comes forward: 200% of the tax payable on taxable goods (2% of value or ₹25,000, whichever is less, for exempt goods). Where the owner does not come forward: the higher of 50% of the value of goods or 200% of tax. Goods and the vehicle are released on payment, or on a bond with security of equal amount (MOV-08) while you contest.
The e-way bill had a small error — is the full penalty still payable?
Not necessarily. CBIC's circulars on minor discrepancies (spelling errors, a wrong pin code within the same place, a vehicle-number digit, a document-number error) direct a token penalty under section 125 (₹500 CGST + ₹500 SGST) instead of section 129. An expired e-way bill where the goods are genuinely in transit with tax paid is routinely contested on the 'no intent to evade' ground — the courts have repeatedly accepted it when the record shows it.
Can I appeal the penalty order?
Yes — to the Appellate Authority under section 107 within three months, with a pre-deposit of 25% of the penalty for section 129 orders. If the goods are perishable or the vehicle is a business asset, we usually secure release on bond first and then appeal.
Why does this happen so often at the Delhi border?
Daily dispatches between Delhi and Ghaziabad, Noida, Gurugram and Faridabad cross a state line, so every consignment needs an inter-state e-way bill and Part B with the vehicle; traffic delays expire bills on short-haul trips, and mobile squads on NH-9, NH-48 and the Noida and Faridabad entry points check them. Most detentions we handle are procedural lapses, not evasion.
Do you appear before the mobile squad and the adjudicating officer?
Yes — the MOV-07 reply, the hearing, release on payment or bond, and the appeal. In Delhi-NCR the proper officer is usually the State mobile squad of the state where the goods were intercepted (UP, Haryana or Delhi), not your home jurisdiction.