A shuttle stuck on the net can be a fault or a let.

The ruleset used on this page

This page applies Badminton World Federation Statutes Section 4.1, Laws of Badminton, Version 5.0 (2), in force 26 April 2025, as checked on 25 August 2026. The controlling provisions are Laws 7.3, 9.1, 13.2, 13.3.2, 13.3.10, 14.1–14.3, 15.1 and 17.5–17.6.

It states the BWF international baseline, including the express Wheelchair Badminton clauses. A local recreational rule or an appointed competition regulation should not be assumed to change this ruling; if one does, identify that document rather than calling the variation a universal badminton rule.

Use four questions, in order

1. Was this the server's original service? If yes, apply Law 13.2.
2. Had the receiver returned the service? If yes, Law 14.2.3 can apply to that return or a later shot.
3. Did the shuttle meet one of the two exact descriptions? It must remain suspended on top, or pass over the net and then be caught in it.
4. Is this Wheelchair Badminton? Its post-return result is a fault under Law 13.3.10, not a let.

If the shuttle only touches the net and continues, or never passes over and falls back, use the ordinary live-shuttle or fault rules instead.

A trapped serve is a fault

BWF Law 13.2.1 makes the service a fault when the shuttle is caught on the net and remains suspended on its top. Law 13.2.2 does the same when the service passes over the net and is then caught in the net.

The receiving side therefore wins the rally and adds a point under Law 7.3. In singles the receiver becomes the new server under Law 10.3.2; in doubles the receiving side becomes the serving side under Law 11.3.2. There is no second serve and no replay because Laws 13.2.1–13.2.2 classify these events as faults, not lets.

The same trapped-shuttle shapes normally produce a let

Once the service has been returned, BWF Law 14.2.3 makes it a let if the shuttle is caught on the net and remains suspended on top, or if it passes over the net and is caught in the net. This is the standard result outside Wheelchair Badminton.

The receiver's return can be the shot that produces the let: the Law does not require a further exchange after that return. For example, if the receiver returns the serve, the return passes over and lodges in the far side of the net, the service has been returned and Law 14.2.3 applies.

Under Law 14.3, everything since the last service is disregarded. The score stays unchanged and the player who served last serves again. In doubles, that also means the service does not pass to the other side merely because the rally was replayed.

“Caught” is narrower than “touched”

The Laws describe two particular outcomes:

• Suspended on top: the shuttle is caught on the net and remains there.
• Caught after passing over: the shuttle first passes over the net and then lodges in the net.

The Laws give no minimum number of seconds for “remains suspended.” The practical distinction is the shuttle's state, not a stopwatch: a shuttle that merely clips, rolls along or tumbles over the tape and continues is not caught within these clauses.

A shuttle that never passes over is not the caught-net let

If a rally shot lodges in the net on the striker's side without passing over, it does not satisfy the second branch of Law 14.2.3. Law 13.3.2 makes a shuttle that fails to pass over the net a fault.

If the shuttle strikes the net or post and starts falling toward the court on the striker's side, Law 15.1 says it is no longer in play. The striker's side loses the rally under the ordinary failure-to-pass rule; the unusual caught-net let is not a rescue for a shot that never crossed.

Touching the tape does not stop play

A shuttle may touch the net and remain live. A rally shot that clips the tape, passes over and continues toward the opponent's court is played normally. Its later landing or another fault decides the rally.

The same principle applies to service. Law 9.1 requires a correct service to travel upward, pass over the net and, if not intercepted, land in the receiver's correct service court. It does not make contact with the tape a fault by itself. A serve that clips the tape and otherwise completes that legal flight is not replayed.

The post-return event is a fault, not a let

BWF Laws 14.2.3.1.1 and 14.2.3.2.1 expressly exclude Wheelchair Badminton from the post-return let. Law 13.3.10 supplies the corresponding fault: in Wheelchair Badminton, a shuttle suspended on top of the net or caught in the net after passing over is a fault.

The side that last struck that shuttle loses the rally, so the opponent scores under Law 7.3. This exception is written for Wheelchair Badminton, not Para badminton as a whole. Standing classes remain under the ordinary Law 14.2.3 let for this particular event unless the appointed rules contain another applicable provision.

The umpire judges the physical event

Law 17.6.1 requires the umpire to enforce the Laws and call a fault or let when either occurs. Law 14.1 also permits a player to call a let when there is no umpire. Any appeal to the umpire on the application of the rule must be made before the next service is delivered under Law 17.6.2.

A caught-net ruling is not a line call. The Instant Review System provision in Law 17.5.2 concerns line-call challenges, so it does not provide a player challenge for whether a shuttle remained suspended or became caught in the net. The responsible official's decision on that factual event is final under Law 17.5; an unresolved appeal on a question of law may be referred to the Referee under Law 17.6.8.

The serve lodges after crossing

Situation: in a standard singles match, the serve passes over the tape and becomes embedded in the receiver's side of the net before the receiver hits it.

BWF Version 5.0 (2) ruling: fault under Law 13.2.2. The receiving player wins a point and becomes the next server. The decisive fact is that this was still the original service.

The return of service sticks

Situation: the receiver returns a legal serve; that return passes over the net and becomes caught in the net on the server's side.

BWF Version 5.0 (2) ruling: let under Laws 14.2.3.2 and 14.3 in standard play. No point is scored, and the original server serves again. The return itself is enough to move the case out of the service-fault clause.

A rally shot catches on the near side

Situation: several strokes after the service, Red hits the shuttle into the net. It lodges below the tape on Red's side and never passes over.

BWF Version 5.0 (2) ruling: fault against Red under Law 13.3.2, not a Law 14.2.3 let. The decisive fact is that the shuttle did not pass over the net before becoming caught.

The shuttle balances on top in wheelchair play

Situation: after the service has been returned in a Wheelchair Badminton match, Blue's next shot remains suspended on top of the net.

BWF Version 5.0 (2) ruling: fault against Blue under Law 13.3.10.1, with a point to the opponent. The same physical result would be a let in standard or standing-class play, but the wheelchair exception changes the outcome.

Four shortcuts that give the wrong answer

• “Anything stuck in the net is a let.” A trapped original service is a fault, and the shuttle must meet one of the Law's exact physical descriptions.
• “The receiver must complete a clean return and then another shot must stick.” The receiver's return can itself satisfy Law 14.2.3.
• “Every Para badminton class uses the fault exception.” The text singles out Wheelchair Badminton.
• “A net cord means replay the point.” Mere contact with the tape does not create a let.

Governing-body source and effective version

• Badminton World Federation — Statutes Section 4.1, Laws of Badminton, Version 5.0 (2), in force 26 April 2025: Laws 7.3, 9.1, 13.2, 13.3.2, 13.3.10, 14.1–14.3, 15.1 and 17.5–17.6

Checked on 25 August 2026 against the BWF's versioned law book. The page uses the international BWF baseline and its express Wheelchair Badminton exception; an appointed competition's regulations should also be checked if it has adopted a specific variation.