In short. You qualify for free legal aid if you are in a section 12 category of the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987, such as a woman, child, SC or ST member or person in custody, or if your annual income is below the state limit (₹3 lakh in Delhi, UP and Haryana; ₹5 lakh for Supreme Court cases). Apply to the DLSA or the court's legal services committee.
This post explains who is entitled, what proof is asked for, where to go in Delhi, Noida and Ghaziabad, what legal aid actually pays for, and what to do if the lawyer assigned to you is not working on your case. It is written for people who need a lawyer and cannot pay one, and for family members trying to get help for someone in custody.
Legal aid is a right, not a favour. Article 39A of the Constitution directs the State to provide free legal aid so that no one is denied justice for economic or other reasons, and the Supreme Court has long treated legal representation for a poor accused as part of the right to life and liberty under Article 21. If someone in your family has just been arrested, read this with our post on rights on arrest in Delhi.
- Law
- Legal Services Authorities Act 1987, section 12
- Income limit (Delhi, UP, Haryana)
- ₹3 lakh a year
- Supreme Court cases
- Income below ₹5 lakh a year
- No income test
- Women, children, SC/ST, custody and other listed groups
- Where to apply
- DLSA front office, High Court or Supreme Court committee
- Helpline
- NALSA toll-free 15100
Who qualifies for free legal aid in India?
Section 12 of the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987 lists who is entitled to legal services for filing or defending a case. They are: a member of a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe; a victim of trafficking in human beings or begar; a woman or a child; a person with a disability; a person in circumstances of undeserved want, such as a victim of mass disaster, ethnic violence, caste atrocity, flood, drought, earthquake or industrial disaster; an industrial workman; a person in custody, including in a protective home, juvenile home, psychiatric hospital or nursing home; and a person whose annual income is below the amount the State Government notifies, or the Central Government for Supreme Court cases.
Only the last category has an income test. A woman is entitled because she is a woman, whatever her income or her husband's income. The same is true of a child, a member of a Scheduled Caste or Tribe, and a person in custody. This is the point most people miss: they assume legal aid is only for the very poor and never apply.
States can add categories through their own rules and regulations. In Delhi, the legal services regulations also cover senior citizens and transgender persons with annual income below ₹4 lakh, acid attack victims, and persons infected or affected by HIV/AIDS. Check with the front office if your situation is close to one of these groups, because the list is wider than the Act alone.
Free legal aid eligibility and income limits at a glance
The figures below are the limits published by NALSA and the Delhi authority as of October 2026. Income limits are revised from time to time, so confirm the current figure at the front office.
| Category | Income limit | Proof usually asked for |
|---|---|---|
| Woman or child | None | Identity proof; age proof for a child |
| Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe | None | Caste certificate |
| Person with a disability | None | Disability certificate or UDID card |
| Victim of trafficking or begar | None | FIR, rescue papers or statement |
| Victim of mass disaster, ethnic violence, caste atrocity, flood, drought, earthquake or industrial disaster | None | FIR or official record of the event, where available |
| Industrial workman | None | Proof of employment, such as an appointment letter, ID card or wage slip |
| Person in custody | None | Custody certificate through the jail or court |
| Any other person, cases in Delhi, UP or Haryana courts | Below ₹3 lakh a year | Affidavit of income |
| Any other person, case in the Supreme Court | Below ₹5 lakh a year | Affidavit sworn by the applicant personally |
| Senior citizen or transgender person, in Delhi | Below ₹4 lakh a year | Age or identity proof and affidavit of income |
| Acid attack victim or person affected by HIV/AIDS, in Delhi | None stated | Medical or police record |
Do you have to prove your income? The affidavit rule
No elaborate proof is needed. Section 13(2) of the Act says an affidavit of income made by the applicant is ordinarily sufficient, unless the authority has reason to disbelieve it. In practice the front office has a standard affidavit format, and for the income category it is often all you need along with identity proof.
Do not overstate or understate anything. Legal aid can be withdrawn if it was obtained by a false statement, and the authority can recover the costs it has spent. If your income is close to the limit, state it accurately and let the authority decide.
There is one more condition. Under section 13(1), the authority must be satisfied that you have a prima facie case to file or defend. This is not a trial of your case; it is a check that the claim is not plainly hopeless or frivolous. A person accused of an offence always has a case to defend, so this condition matters mainly for people who want to start a new civil case.
Where to apply: DLSA, High Court committee or Supreme Court committee
Legal services are organised in tiers. The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) sets policy. Each state has a State Legal Services Authority, each High Court has a High Court Legal Services Committee, each district has a District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), and the Supreme Court has the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee. You apply to the body attached to the court where your case is or will be filed.
In Delhi, the Delhi State Legal Services Authority works through a DLSA for each judicial district, with a front office in the district court complexes at Tis Hazari, Saket, Patiala House, Karkardooma, Rohini and Dwarka. For matters in the Delhi High Court, the Delhi High Court Legal Services Committee sits in the High Court. In Uttar Pradesh, the DLSA for Gautam Buddh Nagar is at the district court at Surajpur and the DLSA for Ghaziabad is at the Ghaziabad district court.
You can also start with the NALSA helpline 15100, NALSA's online legal aid application, or a legal aid clinic in your area, many of which are in jails, colleges and community centres and are staffed by para-legal volunteers. They will route the application to the right DLSA. Walking into the front office of the court complex is still the quickest route for most people in Delhi NCR.
Which legal services body handles your case?
| Your case is in | Apply to | Practical note |
|---|---|---|
| A Delhi district court, family court or magistrate's court | DLSA for that district | Front office in the same court complex |
| The Delhi High Court | Delhi High Court Legal Services Committee | Office in the High Court premises |
| The Supreme Court | Supreme Court Legal Services Committee | Online e-filing, by post or at its front office |
| Courts in Noida or Greater Noida | DLSA Gautam Buddh Nagar | At the district court, Surajpur |
| Courts in Ghaziabad | DLSA Ghaziabad | At the Ghaziabad district court |
| Allahabad High Court | High Court Legal Services Committee | At the High Court, including its Lucknow bench |
| Not yet filed, or before a tribunal or commission | DLSA of the area where you live | The DLSA advises and refers you to the right forum |
How to apply for free legal aid, step by step
Identify the court and the body
Work out which court your case is in or will go to, and so which DLSA or committee to approach. If you are not sure, go to the DLSA of the district where you live; it will guide you.
Collect your papers
Take identity proof, proof of the category you rely on, an income affidavit if you apply on income, and every paper about the case: FIR, summons, notice, order sheet, previous orders, agreement, letters. If the case is already pending, carry the case number and next date.
Fill in the application at the front office or online
The front office has a printed form and staff to help fill it in. Online applications go through NALSA's legal aid portal, or the Supreme Court committee's e-filing for Supreme Court cases. Get a receipt or diary number.
Speak to the retainer or panel lawyer
Most front offices have a lawyer on duty who listens to the problem and gives first advice. Explain the facts in order and mention any date coming up, such as a hearing, a limitation deadline or a bail date.
Receive the assignment order
If the application is approved, the authority issues an order assigning a panel lawyer to your case. Note the lawyer's name, phone number and chamber, and give your own number.
Stay in touch and attend dates
Meet the lawyer before each important date, give documents promptly and keep copies of everything filed. If there is a problem, go back to the front office with the assignment order.
For Supreme Court cases, the committee usually completes scrutiny within about a week of a complete application, and applications without required documents are rejected, so the paper book of the High Court case and, where an advocate already appeared, a no-objection from that advocate should be attached.
Documents to carry when you apply
About you
- Aadhaar card, voter ID or other identity proof
- Caste certificate, disability certificate or UDID card, if relying on that category
- Affidavit of income, if applying on income (the front office has the format)
- Two passport-size photographs
- A working phone number and address for notices
About the case
- FIR copy, summons, notice or complaint
- Order sheets and the last order in a pending case
- Agreement, receipts, letters, messages relevant to the dispute
- Case number and next date of hearing
- For a Supreme Court case: the High Court judgment and paper book
If the person is in custody
- Name, father's or husband's name and jail number, if known
- FIR number and police station
- Name of the court that remanded the person
- Custody certificate, which the jail authorities can attest
What does free legal aid actually cover?
Legal services under the Act are wider than a free lawyer. They include the panel lawyer's fee, court fees, process fees, expenses of witnesses, drafting of pleadings, preparation and printing of paper books, and the cost of certified copies of orders and judgments. You should not be asked to pay any of these to the lawyer or the court staff.
Legal aid also covers advice before any case is filed. The DLSA can help draft a reply to a notice, an application to the police, a complaint to an authority or a representation to a department. It can refer a dispute to pre-litigation mediation or to a Lok Adalat, which often solves family, money and service problems without a case at all.
It covers proceedings before courts, tribunals and other authorities: criminal trials and bail, maintenance and domestic violence cases, matrimonial cases, property and civil suits, consumer complaints, labour matters and service disputes. Some categories of proceedings are commonly excluded or given only in special cases under the legal services regulations, such as defamation, malicious prosecution and election petitions, so ask the front office at the start if your case is of that kind.
Free legal aid if you or a family member is arrested
A person in custody is entitled to legal aid regardless of income. Section 341 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 requires the court to assign a lawyer at State expense where an accused before a Court of Session has no lawyer and cannot afford one, and states can extend this to other courts. Remand advocates from the DLSA are posted in magistrates' courts in Delhi so that a person produced after arrest is not left without a lawyer at the first remand hearing.
NALSA's Legal Aid Defense Counsel System has set up offices in many districts with full-time defence lawyers who handle only legal aid criminal cases, from remand to trial. Jails have legal aid clinics where prisoners can apply, and Undertrial Review Committees in each district look at cases of prisoners who may be entitled to release, including under section 479 of the BNSS. Our post on undertrial release under section 479 BNSS explains that provision.
If your family member has just been arrested, tell the magistrate at the first production that the person has no lawyer and wants legal aid, or go to the DLSA front office in the same complex. Bail applications are time-sensitive. Our page on bail practice explains what papers matter at the first hearing.
Legal aid for victims: compensation and support
Victims of crime can get legal aid as well. A woman or child victim falls in a section 12 category anyway, and DLSAs also assign lawyers to assist victims during trial, help with applications for protection, and support survivors through the statement before a magistrate and the court process.
Victim compensation is handled by the legal services authorities. Under section 396 of the BNSS, every state has a victim compensation scheme, and the DLSA or SLSA decides the amount on a recommendation of the court or on an application by the victim or dependants, including interim relief where needed. Acid attack survivors and victims of sexual offences have specific provisions in the schemes. Apply to the DLSA of the district where the offence took place, with the FIR and medical papers.
Can you get free legal aid in the Supreme Court or the High Court?
Yes. The Supreme Court Legal Services Committee provides lawyers for special leave petitions, appeals and other matters in the Supreme Court. The income limit for the general category is annual income below ₹5 lakh, and the other section 12 categories apply as they do elsewhere. Applications are accepted online through the committee's e-filing system, by speed post or at its front office, with an affidavit sworn by the applicant personally and the paper book of the case below.
Supreme Court cases run on short limitation periods: 90 days from the High Court judgment for most special leave petitions. Do not wait for the last weeks to apply, because scrutiny and assignment take time and incomplete applications are rejected. Our post on the special leave petition in the Supreme Court explains the timeline and the paper book, and our page on Supreme Court practice explains how matters are filed.
For the Delhi High Court, the Delhi High Court Legal Services Committee assigns panel lawyers for writs, appeals, revisions and bail matters. It also runs mediation and Lok Adalat sittings for High Court cases.
A made-up example: maintenance for a woman in Dwarka
Here's a made-up example. Meena lives in Dwarka with her six-year-old son. Her husband left eighteen months ago and stopped sending money. She works part-time and assumes she cannot afford a lawyer. A neighbour tells her about the DLSA front office at the Dwarka court complex.
She goes with her Aadhaar card, her marriage photographs, her son's birth certificate, a few bank statements and the WhatsApp messages in which her husband refused to pay. The front office registers her application. Because she is a woman, no income proof is needed. The retainer lawyer explains the options: a maintenance petition under section 144 of the BNSS, a case under the Domestic Violence Act, or both.
The DLSA assigns a panel lawyer the same week. The petition is filed with an application for interim maintenance and an affidavit of assets and income, and the family court refers the couple to mediation on the first date. Meena pays nothing for the court fee, the drafting or the certified copies. Whether she gets an interim order, and for how much, is for the court to decide on the evidence, but she is in court with a lawyer within a month of walking in.
Can you choose or change your legal aid lawyer?
You do not choose the lawyer at the start; the authority assigns one from its panel. Panel lawyers are selected under the NALSA (Free and Competent Legal Services) Regulations 2010, which require experience and set up monitoring and mentoring committees to check how cases are handled. The Supreme Court committee and the High Court committee keep their own panels.
If the lawyer does not take your calls, misses dates or is not preparing the case, write to the Secretary of the DLSA or committee with your assignment order number and the specific problem: dates missed, documents not filed, no meeting before a hearing. You can ask for the lawyer to be changed. Requests with specific facts are taken seriously; a general complaint that the case is slow is harder to act on.
A panel lawyer must not ask you for money. If anyone demands a fee, court fee or 'expenses' for a legal aid case, report it to the Secretary in writing. This is one of the clearest grounds for removal from the panel.
When can legal aid be refused or withdrawn?
Legal aid can be refused if you do not fall in any eligible category, if there is no prima facie case to file or defend, or if the matter is of a kind the regulations exclude. It can be withdrawn later if it was obtained by a false statement, if your means change so that you are no longer eligible, if you stop cooperating with the lawyer, or if you engage a private lawyer for the same case.
If you are refused, ask for the reason in writing. The regulations allow a refusal to be reviewed within the authority, so you can make a representation to the Chairman or Executive Chairman with the documents that answer the reason. Often the refusal is because a paper was missing, and a complete application fixes it.
If you engage your own lawyer later, tell the authority and take a no-objection from the panel lawyer so that the file can be handed over cleanly. Two lawyers acting at once for the same party confuses the court and the record.
Lok Adalat and settlement through the legal services authorities
Legal services authorities also run Lok Adalats under Chapter VI of the Act. National Lok Adalats are held on fixed dates through the year in every court complex, and pending cases or pre-litigation disputes can be referred to them. An award of a Lok Adalat is treated as a decree of a civil court, is final and binding, and cannot be appealed. If a pending case is settled there, the court fee you paid is refunded.
Permanent Lok Adalats deal with disputes about public utility services such as transport, electricity, water, telephone, hospitals and insurance, up to a value limit set by notification, and can decide the case on merits if settlement fails. Our post on Lok Adalat settlement explains how a settlement there works and when it suits you.
Legal aid or a private advocate: an honest view
Legal aid lawyers handle a large number of cases, and many of them do careful work. The weak point is usually not ability but time. A legal aid client who stays in touch, brings documents on time and attends every date generally gets better service than one who waits to be called. Keep your own file with copies of everything filed and every order.
In criminal matters that reach Advocate B.K. Singh after an earlier stage on legal aid, the gaps he most often finds are in the record rather than the law: an order sheet nobody collected, a bail order whose conditions were never complied with, a document the family had but never handed over. Those are things the client can control, whoever the lawyer is.
Some cases need more than a legal aid panel can usually give: long white-collar trials with many documents, commercial disputes, cases spread across several courts. If you are not eligible, or want a private advocate, ask about fees at the first meeting and get the terms in writing, stage by stage. Court fees and other costs are separate.
Mistakes people make when seeking legal aid
- Assuming it is only for the very poor. Women, children, SC/ST members, persons in custody and other listed groups qualify whatever their income.
- Applying too late. A bail hearing, a limitation deadline or a 90-day SLP window does not wait for the assignment order, so apply as soon as the problem arises.
- Going without the case papers. Without the FIR, notice or order, the front office cannot tell you what to do next.
- Losing touch with the assigned lawyer. Save the lawyer's number on the day of assignment and meet before every important date.
- Paying money to anyone. Legal aid is free; any demand should be reported to the Secretary in writing.
- Not complaining specifically. Write down the dates missed and documents not filed; specific complaints get action.
- Hiding a private lawyer. Tell the authority if you engage one, to avoid confusion and withdrawal on bad terms.
What to do this week if you need free legal aid
- Check whether you fall in a section 12 category or under the income limit for your state.
- Find the DLSA front office in the court complex where your case is, or call 15100.
- Gather identity proof, category proof or an income affidavit, and all case papers.
- Write down the next hearing date and any deadline you know of.
- Apply in person or online and keep the receipt or diary number.
- Note the name and number of the panel lawyer from the assignment order.
- Meet the lawyer before the next date and hand over copies, keeping originals with you.
- If something goes wrong, write to the Secretary of the DLSA with specifics.
Related reading and getting advice
For family matters, our page on family and divorce law and our post on maintenance under section 144 BNSS explain the cases legal aid applicants file most often. If you need records from a government office for your case, see our post on RTI applications and appeals.
If you are not eligible for legal aid, or want a second reading of a case that is already running, you can write to the team of Advocate B.K. Singh at B.K. Singh & Associates through the online enquiry page with the papers and the next date.
Frequently asked questions
Is free legal aid available to all women in India?
Yes. Section 12(c) of the Legal Services Authorities Act makes every woman eligible, with no income limit. She still needs a prima facie case to file or defend, which the authority checks briefly.
What is the income limit for free legal aid in Delhi?
Annual income below ₹3 lakh for the general category, as currently published. In Delhi, senior citizens and transgender persons qualify with income below ₹4 lakh. Limits are revised from time to time, so confirm at the DLSA front office.
How do I get a free lawyer from the DLSA?
Go to the DLSA front office in the district court complex where your case is, with identity proof, proof of category or an income affidavit, and your case papers. If approved, the DLSA issues an order assigning a panel lawyer.
Can I apply for free legal aid online?
Yes. NALSA has an online legal aid application, and the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee has its own e-filing system. In-person applications at the front office are often quicker for urgent matters in Delhi NCR.
Does free legal aid include the court fee?
Yes. Legal services include court fees, process fees, drafting, witness expenses, paper books and certified copies, as well as the lawyer's fee. You should not be asked to pay these yourself.
Is legal aid available for bail?
Yes. A person in custody is eligible regardless of income, and remand advocates from the DLSA are posted in magistrates' courts in Delhi. Tell the magistrate at the first production that the accused needs a legal aid lawyer.
Can I get free legal aid for a Supreme Court SLP?
Yes, through the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee, if you are in a section 12 category or earn below ₹5 lakh a year. Apply early with the High Court judgment, the paper book and an affidavit sworn personally.
Can I change my legal aid lawyer?
Yes. Write to the Secretary of the DLSA or committee with your assignment order number and specific problems, such as missed dates or documents not filed, and ask for a change.
What should I do if a legal aid lawyer asks for money?
Do not pay. Report it in writing to the Secretary of the legal services authority. Panel lawyers are not allowed to take any fee from a legal aid client.
Can legal aid be taken away once granted?
Yes, if it was obtained by a false statement, if your means change, if you do not cooperate or if you engage a private lawyer for the same case. The authority may also recover costs where aid was obtained by misrepresentation.
Does free legal aid cover civil and property cases?
Yes. It covers civil suits, family cases, consumer complaints, labour and service matters as well as criminal cases, provided you are eligible and have a prima facie case. Some categories, such as defamation or election petitions, may be excluded under the regulations.
What is the NALSA helpline number?
The NALSA toll-free helpline is 15100. It gives basic legal advice and directs callers to the right legal services authority or legal aid clinic.
Written and reviewed at B.K. Singh & Associates
Advocate B.K. Singh
Founder of B.K. Singh & Associates. MCA, LL.B., LL.M., with more than twenty years of practice before the Supreme Court, the Delhi High Court, district courts and tribunals across Delhi NCR. This article explains the general law as of 24 October 2026; it is not legal advice on your facts.