s 57 Allowance for spoiled stamps
Subject to any rules which may be made under this Act and to the production of such evidence by statutory declaration or otherwise as the Collector may require, allowance shall be made by the Collector for stamps spoiled in the following cases: (a) the stamp on any paper inadvertently and undesignedly spoiled, obliterated or by any means rendered unfit for the purpose intended, before the paper bears the signature of any person or any instrument written thereon is executed by any party; (b) any adhesive stamp which has been inadvertently and undesignedly spoiled or rendered unfit for use and has not in the opinion of the Collector been affixed to any paper; (c) the stamp on any bill of exchange signed by or on behalf of the drawer which has not been accepted or made use of in any manner whatever or delivered out of his hands for any purpose other than by way of tender for acceptance; (d) the stamp on any promissory note signed by or on behalf of the maker which has not been made use of in any manner whatever or delivered out of his hands; (e) the stamp on any bill of exchange or promissory note which from any omission or error has been spoiled or rendered useless, although the same, being a bill of exchange, may have been accepted or indorsed, or, being a promissory note, may have been delivered to the payee, provided that another completed and duly stamped bill of exchange, or promissory note, is produced identical in every particular except in the correction of the error or omission, with the spoiled bill or note; (f) the stamp used for any of the following instruments: (i) an instrument executed by any party thereto, but afterwards found to be absolutely void from the beginning; (ii) an instrument executed by any party thereto, but afterwards found unfit, by reason of any error or mistake therein, for the purpose originally intended; (iii) an instrument executed by any party thereto, which has not been made use of for any purpose whatever, and which by reason of the inability or refusal of some necessary party to sign the same or to complete the transaction according to the instrument is incomplete and insufficient for the purpose for which it was intended; (iv) an instrument executed by any party thereto, which by reason of the inability or refusal of any person to act under the same, or for want of registration within the time required by law, fails of the intended purpose or becomes void; (v) an instrument executed by any party thereto, which is inadvertently and undesignedly spoiled, and in lieu whereof another instrument made between the same parties and for the same purpose is executed and duly stamped, or which becomes useless in consequence of the transaction intended to be thereby effected being effected by some other instrument duly stamped: Provided as follows: (a) that the application for relief is made within twelve months after the stamp has been spoiled or become useless or in the case of an executed instrument after the date of the instrument, or, if it is not dated, within twelve months after the execution thereof by the person whom it was first or alone executed or within such further time as the Collector may prescribe in the case of any instrument sent abroad for execution or when from unavoidable circumstances any instrument for which another has been substituted cannot be produced within the said period; (b) that in the case of an executed instrument no legal proceeding has been commenced in which the instrument could or would have been given or offered in evidence, and that the instrument is given up to be cancelled.