## Proviso, Exception and Saving Clause

### Function of a Proviso

The normal function of a proviso is:

to except something out of the enactment, or
to qualify something stated in the enactment which would otherwise fall within its purview.

As a general rule, a proviso is added to qualify the main enactment or to create an exception to it.

### Distinction at a Glance

Device	Purpose
Exception	Restrains the enacting clause to particular cases. It carves out cases from the rule itself.
Proviso	Removes special cases from a general enactment and provides for them specially.
Saving Clause	Preserves from destruction certain rights, remedies or privileges already existing. Typically used on repeal and re-enactment to continue past rights.

### When Each Is Used

Exception — built into the rule (e.g., 'X shall not apply to A, B, C').
Proviso — added at the end of a provision to deal specially with a subset (e.g., 'Provided that …').
Saving Clause — used when an old Act is repealed and replaced, to keep alive rights that accrued under the old law.

⚠️ Common exam mistakes

Treating a proviso and an exception as identical — they operate differently (a proviso qualifies a general rule; an exception restrains it).
Forgetting that a saving clause is mainly relevant on repeal/re-enactment, not in ordinary provisions.
Reading a proviso as a substantive enactment instead of as a qualifier or exception to the main provision.

Reference:

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Internal Aid: Proviso vs Exception vs Saving Clause

Worked example