Section 7 of the RTI Act — the 30-day clock that protects your application

The 30-day clock is the single most powerful protection in the RTI Act. It does not depend on the goodwill of the officer; it runs automatically from the day the application is received. Every other right in the Act — appeal, penalty, compensation — flows from this deadline. Understanding it is the difference between a productive RTI and an open-ended file in a drawer.

Section 7(1) says the PIO must dispose of your request within 30 days — either by supplying the information or by rejecting it with reasons. There is a separate 48-hour rule for information that concerns the life or liberty of a person — for example, a missing person, an unrecorded FIR, a patient's own medical records from a government hospital, an undertrial seeking their own case papers. If the request involves a third party, the timeline stretches to 40 days under Section 11.

Section 7(3) says the PIO must inform you of any further fee (printing, CD, postage) before charging it. Section 7(5) waives the application fee for BPL applicants. Section 7(6) is the citizen's strongest tool: if the PIO blows the 30-day deadline, the information must be supplied without further fee. Section 7(8) says every rejection must be a “speaking order” — citing the exact sub-clause relied on, applying it to the facts, and telling you the appeal route. Section 7(9) allows the PIO to change the form of disclosure (offer inspection instead of photocopies, for example) but does not permit outright refusal.

“Where information sought for concerns the life or liberty of a person, the same shall be provided within forty-eight hours of the receipt of the request.” — Proviso to Section 7(1), RTI Act, 2005 ¹⁾

1. Count from the day the office received your application, not the day you posted it. Keep the registered post or e-filing acknowledgement.
2. On day 31, you already have two free remedies. First, the deemed refusal lets you file a first appeal even without a reply. Second, Section 7(6) makes the information itself free of further fee.
3. Use the 48-hour rule honestly. If the information genuinely concerns life or liberty (yours or someone else's), write that in the subject line — “URGENT, Section 7(1) proviso — life and liberty”. Add a paragraph explaining why.
4. A “voluminous” refusal is not legal. Section 7(9) permits change of form only — the PIO can ask you to come and inspect — but cannot refuse altogether. Cite CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay (2011) in your appeal.
5. Every rejection must be a speaking order. Under 7(8), it must name the exact sub-clause of Section 8 or 9, explain the application to the facts, and give the FAA's name and address.

• The PIO sends a reply on day 45 demanding Rs 200 for photocopies. The reply is late under 7(1), so the photocopies are free under 7(6). Reply citing 7(6) and ask for delivery without payment.
• You are filing for your own hospital records during a medical emergency. Mark the application “URGENT — Section 7(1) proviso, life and liberty”. The PIO must respond in 48 hours. A delay of even one day is appealable.

1. Day 31: treat it as a deemed refusal and file a first appeal under Section 19(1). Use the deemed-refusal first appeal template.
2. Quote Section 7(6) in the appeal: even if the FAA later directs disclosure, the information must be supplied free.
3. If the PIO cited Section 7(9) to refuse: see our wrongful refusal appeal template and replace the citation with 7(9).
4. If the delay is part of a pattern of mala fide conduct: pray for a Section 20 penalty in the second appeal — see Section 20.

• Back to the Act index
• Section 6 — How to file
• Section 8 — Exemptions
• Section 11 — Third-party 40-day timeline
• Section 19 — Appeals
• Section 20 — Penalties
• PIO Reply Checker — test if the reply is a valid speaking order
• First Appeal Builder
• RTI fees by State

The 30-day rule under 7(1) requires disposal — that is, a complete and reasoned reply. An incomplete reply does not stop the clock; it is treated as a partial refusal and is appealable under Section 19(1) on day 31.

No. The Rs 10 application fee is the entry fee under Section 6 and is not refunded. What is waived under 7(6) is the further fee — photocopying, CD, postage — that the PIO would otherwise have charged for the information itself.

No. The Supreme Court in CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay (2011) held that 7(9) allows only a change of form — typically, inspection in place of photocopies. Outright refusal under 7(9) is illegal and is a recognised ground for the first appeal.

Last reviewed on: 15 May 2026 — RTI Wiki editorial team.