Patrol CompanionKey points
- The detention clock runs from the relevant time under s.41(2), usually arrival at the first police station after arrest.
- The basic limit is 24 hours without charge (s.41(1)).
- A superintendent can authorise up to 36 hours for an indictable offence (s.42), but not before the second review and not later than 24 hours after the relevant time.
- Magistrates can issue a warrant of further detention (s.43) and extend it (s.44), up to 96 hours after the relevant time.
- Reviews run from when detention was first authorised: the first not later than 6 hours after, the second not later than 9 hours after the first, then at intervals of not more than 9 hours (s.40(3)).
- A postponed review does not move the timing of later reviews (s.40(6)).
This page covers detention before charge under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. The custody time limits that apply once a case is in court are a separate scheme, under s.22 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 (see the CPS custody time limits guidance).
The relevant time
Every limit is counted from “the relevant time”, set by s.41(2). In most cases it is s.41(2)(d): “the time at which the person arrested arrives at the first police station to which he is taken after his arrest”.
| Situation | Relevant time |
|---|---|
| Usual case, s.41(2)(d) | Arrival at the first police station after arrest |
| Attends voluntarily, or goes with a constable without being arrested, and is then arrested at the station, s.41(2)(c) | The time of the arrest |
| Answers street bail granted under s.30A, s.41(2)(ca) | Arrival at the police station |
| Arrest sought in one police area, made in another, and not questioned there, s.41(2)(a) and (3) | Arrival at the first police station in the area that wanted them, or 24 hours after arrest, whichever is earlier |
| Arrested outside England and Wales, s.41(2)(b) | Arrival at the first police station in the investigating area, or 24 hours after entering England and Wales, whichever is earlier |
Time in hospital is treated differently. Under s.41(6), time spent being questioned in hospital, or on the way there or back, for the purpose of obtaining evidence counts. Other time in hospital, or on the way there or back, does not.
Time on bail does not count either. PACE Code C (paragraph 15.16) has this note: “Any period during which a person is released on bail does not count towards the maximum period of detention without charge allowed under PACE, sections 41 to 44.”
The 24 hour limit
Section 41(1) sets the basic rule: “a person shall not be kept in police detention for more than 24 hours without being charged”.
At the end of 24 hours after the relevant time, a person not charged must be released (s.41(7)): “on bail, if the pre-conditions for bail are satisfied”, or without bail if they are not. That does not apply where longer detention has been authorised or permitted under s.42 or s.43.
Once released, they cannot be arrested again without a warrant for the same offence unless, under s.41(9), “new evidence has come to light or an examination or analysis of existing evidence has been made which could not reasonably have been made before his release”.
Extension to 36 hours by a superintendent
Under s.42(1), an officer of the rank of superintendent or above who is responsible for the station can authorise detention “for a period expiring at or before 36 hours after the relevant time”. They need reasonable grounds for believing that:
- (a) “the detention of that person without charge is necessary to secure or preserve evidence relating to an offence for which he is under arrest or to obtain such evidence by questioning him”
- (b) “an offence for which he is under arrest is an indictable offence”
- (c) “the investigation is being conducted diligently and expeditiously”
The timing rules are in s.42(4). No authorisation can be given “more than 24 hours after the relevant time” or “before the second review of his detention under section 40 above has been carried out”.
If the first authorisation was for less than 36 hours, a superintendent can authorise more time up to the 36 hour point, as long as the conditions are still met (s.42(2)). Before deciding, the officer must give the detainee, or any solicitor representing them who is available, the chance to make representations (s.42(6)). They must tell the detainee the grounds and record them in the custody record (s.42(5)).
Code C adds two points. Paragraph 15.2A says detaining a juvenile or a vulnerable person beyond 24 hours depends on the circumstances, with regard to their vulnerability, the chance to make representations, the views of any appropriate adult and alternatives to custody. Paragraph 15.16(b) requires the record to state “the number of hours and minutes by which the detention period is extended or further extended”.
Warrants of further detention
Beyond 36 hours, only a magistrates' court can authorise detention. Under s.43(1), a constable applies on oath, supported by an information. For this purpose, s.45(1) defines the magistrates' court as “a court consisting of two or more justices of the peace sitting otherwise than in open court”.
The test in s.43(4) is the same three conditions as s.42: necessary to secure, preserve or obtain evidence, an indictable offence, and an investigation conducted diligently and expeditiously. The detainee must have a copy of the information and be brought before the court for the hearing (s.43(2)), and is entitled to be legally represented (s.43(3)).
When to apply
Section 43(5) allows the application at any time before 36 hours after the relevant time. If the court cannot sit at the 36 hour point but will sit in the following 6 hours, the application can be made within those 6 hours, and the custody officer must record why the person was kept beyond 36 hours (s.43(6)).
Do not leave it late. Under s.43(7), if the application is made after the 36 hours and “it appears to the magistrates’ court that it would have been reasonable for the police to make it before the expiry of that period, the court shall dismiss the application”.
Code C Note 15D says an application under s.43 or s.44 “should be made between 10am and 9pm, and if possible during normal court hours”.
How long
The warrant is for the period the court thinks fit, and under s.43(12) “The period shall not be longer than 36 hours.”
Extending the warrant to 96 hours
The court can extend a warrant on a further application under s.44. Section 44(3) says the period shall not “be longer than 36 hours” or “end later than 96 hours after the relevant time”. Further extensions can be given on the same terms up to that 96 hour point (s.44(4)).
If an application under s.43 or s.44 is refused, the person must be charged straight away or released, on bail or without (s.43(15) and s.44(7)). They do not have to be released before any period already authorised has run out.
| Worked example: relevant time 10:00 Monday | Time |
|---|---|
| 24 hours, s.41 | 10:00 Tuesday |
| 36 hours, superintendent's maximum, s.42 | 22:00 Tuesday |
| Late application window if the court is not sitting at 36 hours, s.43(5)(b) | Up to 04:00 Wednesday |
| 96 hours, absolute maximum, s.44(3) | 10:00 Friday |
Review times
Reviews are under s.40. Before charge, the review officer is “an officer of at least the rank of inspector who has not been directly involved in the investigation”. After charge, it is the custody officer.
The timetable in s.40(3) runs from when detention was first authorised, not from the relevant time:
- (a) “the first review shall be not later than six hours after the detention was first authorised”
- (b) “the second review shall be not later than nine hours after the first”
- (c) “subsequent reviews shall be at intervals of not more than nine hours”
| Worked example: detention first authorised at 14:00 | Due by |
|---|---|
| First review | 20:00 |
| Second review, if the first was done at 19:00 | 04:00 |
| Third review, if the second was done at 03:30 | 12:30 |
A review done early brings the next one forward, because the next is timed from when the last one was done.
Before deciding, the review officer must give the detainee (unless asleep) or any available solicitor the chance to make representations (s.40(12)). Code C Note 15C says that for a review, but not an extension, “the detainee need not be woken for the review”. Under s.40A, a review before charge can be carried out by telephone with people at the station, unless regulations under s.45A allow that kind of review by live link and it is reasonably practicable to use one.
Postponing a review
Section 40(4) allows a review to be postponed:
- (a) “if, having regard to all the circumstances prevailing at the latest time for it specified in subsection (3) above, it is not practicable to carry out the review at that time”
- (b)(i) if the detainee is being questioned and the review officer is satisfied that interrupting “would prejudice the investigation in connection with which he is being questioned”
- (b)(ii) “if at that time no review officer is readily available”
A postponed review must then be carried out “as soon as practicable after the latest time specified for it in subsection (3) above” (s.40(5)). The review officer “shall record the reasons for any postponement of a review in the custody record” (s.40(7)), and Code C paragraph 15.13 says: “The grounds for, and extent of, any delay in conducting a review shall be recorded.”
Postponement does not move the timetable
Section 40(6) is the one people miss:
“If a review is carried out after postponement under subsection (4) above, the fact that it was so carried out shall not affect any requirement of this section as to the time at which any subsequent review is to be carried out.”PACE 1984 s.40(6)
So if the first review was due by 20:00 and was postponed to 21:30 because the detainee was in interview, the second review is still due by 05:00, nine hours after the latest time for the first. It is not due by 06:30.
Sources
PACE 1984 s.40, s.40A, s.41, s.42, s.43, s.44 and s.45 on legislation.gov.uk. PACE Code C 2023 on GOV.UK, paragraphs 15.2A, 15.13 and 15.16, and Notes 15C and 15D.
More from the blog
Patrol Companion app
The Custody Clock in the app takes the relevant time and shows the 24, 36 and 96 hour points, and works out when each review is due from the time detention was first authorised, with s.40 quoted. You can track more than one detainee. It is part of Patrol Companion Pro and is a calculation aid: the custody record is still the record that counts.
Last checked 21 October 2026 against legislation.gov.uk and PACE Code C on GOV.UK. General information for officers, not legal advice: check the current law and your force policy.