Does Section 208 apply to offences on Indian-registered ships or aircraft?

Yes. The section covers an offence committed outside India by a person who is not an Indian citizen when it is committed on a ship or aircraft registered in India.

Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023

Section 208 BNSS: Offence Committed Outside India

Q: What does Section 208 BNSS deal with?

Section 208 BNSS deals with specified offences committed outside India and permits the person to be dealt with as if the offence had been committed at a place in India where the person may be found or where the offence is registered in India.

Q: Is Central Government sanction required under Section 208 BNSS?

Yes. Section 208 provides that an offence covered by the section shall not be inquired into or tried in India without the previous sanction of the Central Government.

Section 208 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 sets out the Indian procedural jurisdiction for specified offences committed outside India and makes previous sanction of the Central Government necessary before such an offence is inquired into or tried in India.

Updated: 11 September 2026 | BNSS in force from 1 July 2024

Text of Section 208 BNSS

208. When an offence is committed outside India—

(a) by a citizen of India, whether on the high seas or elsewhere; or

(b) by a person, not being such citizen, on any ship or aircraft registered in India,

he may be dealt with in respect of such offence as if it had been committed at any place within India at which he may be found or where the offence is registered in India:

Provided that notwithstanding anything in any of the preceding sections of this Chapter, no such offence shall be inquired into or tried in India except with the previous sanction of the Central Government.

Meaning and scope of Section 208 BNSS

Section 208 is a rule of criminal procedure for offences having an extra-territorial element. It does not itself create the substantive offence. Instead, it explains when a person may be dealt with in India for an offence committed outside India and identifies the procedural safeguard of previous Central Government sanction for inquiry or trial.

Who can be covered?

An Indian citizen who commits an offence outside India, whether on the high seas or elsewhere.
A person who is not an Indian citizen who commits the offence on a ship or aircraft registered in India.

Where can the person be dealt with in India?

The section allows the person to be dealt with as if the offence had been committed at a place in India where:

the person may be found; or
the offence is registered in India.

This rule should be read with the other provisions in the BNSS chapter dealing with jurisdiction and place of inquiry or trial, including Section 201, Section 203, Section 207, and Section 209.

Previous sanction of the Central Government

The proviso to Section 208 is important. It states that an offence covered by the section shall not be inquired into or tried in India except with the previous sanction of the Central Government. The Ministry of Home Affairs, Judicial Division, identifies proposals under Section 208 BNSS as proposals for sanction for prosecution.

Practical point

The statutory wording specifically refers to an offence being "inquired into or tried" in India. Questions about the stage at which sanction is required, the competent authority, and the effect of an absent or defective sanction can depend on the facts and the applicable judicial decisions.

Connection with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023

Section 208 BNSS deals with procedure and territorial jurisdiction. The substantive reach of Indian criminal law beyond India is addressed separately in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. Section 1 of the BNS includes provisions dealing with liability for acts committed beyond India and with offences committed by Indian citizens, on Indian-registered ships or aircraft, and in certain cases involving computer resources located in India.

Accordingly, Section 208 BNSS should ordinarily be read together with the substantive penal provision that makes the conduct punishable and the applicable provisions of the BNS dealing with extra-territorial application.

Section 208 BNSS and former Section 188 CrPC

Section 208 BNSS broadly occupies the field previously dealt with by Section 188 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. The Ministry of Home Affairs itself cross-references Section 208 BNSS with Section 188 CrPC in its Judicial Division material. For proceedings governed by the BNSS, the current statutory text of Section 208 should be used.

Point	Section 208 BNSS
Subject	Offence committed outside India
Indian citizen abroad	Covered
Non-citizen on Indian-registered ship or aircraft	Covered
Place in India	Where the person may be found or where the offence is registered in India
Central Government sanction	Required before the offence is inquired into or tried in India

Frequently asked questions

What does Section 208 BNSS deal with?

It deals with specified offences committed outside India and the circumstances in which the accused may be dealt with in India.

Is Central Government sanction mandatory?

The proviso expressly states that an offence covered by Section 208 shall not be inquired into or tried in India without the previous sanction of the Central Government.

Does Section 208 cover an Indian citizen who commits an offence abroad?

Yes. Clause (a) expressly applies when the offence outside India is committed by a citizen of India, whether on the high seas or elsewhere.

Does it cover a foreign national on an Indian ship or aircraft?

Yes. Clause (b) covers a person who is not an Indian citizen when the offence is committed on a ship or aircraft registered in India.