1 November 2026 • 5 min read
On 10 September 2026 the Department of Consumer Affairs said it had amended the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020. The new Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) (Amendment) Rules, 2026 come into force on 1 January 2027. That leaves about two months from today, 1 November 2026, to change product, pricing and seller-onboarding flows. This page lists each change in plain words, who it falls on, and what to build. It uses the government's own release. I could not open the gazette text, so read it before you finalise anything.
The PIB release gives one reason in numbers. In 2025 the National Consumer Helpline received 17,71,622 grievances, of which 5,11,196, or around 29 per cent, related to the e-commerce sector. The amended Rules also require every e-commerce entity to become a partner in the convergence process of the National Consumer Helpline, which links platforms to the national complaint system.
| Area | What the amended Rules provide |
|---|---|
| Complaints | Give the complainant a copy of the complaint as recorded by the grievance officer |
| Search results | No manipulation that misleads users or hurts the relevance of results to the query |
| Sponsored listings | Identify them through clear and prominent disclosures |
| Price reductions | Show both the reduced price and the prior price |
| Dark patterns | Follow the 2023 dark patterns guidelines, run a yearly self-audit, display a certificate of compliance |
| Seller and product information | Marketplaces provide key information, such as best before or use before dates, return and refund, warranty, delivery and payment details |
| Consumer information | Marketplaces need express and affirmative consent before using it for specified purposes |
| Bundled fees | Marketplaces may not collect bundled fees for services unrelated to the platform, with an exception for loyalty or membership programmes |
| Imported goods | Disclose importer details and country of origin |
The release says the "prior price" means the lowest price at which the goods or services were offered during the 30 days before the announcement.
The 2020 Rules define an e-commerce entity as any person who owns, operates or manages a digital or electronic platform for e-commerce. A seller offering goods on a marketplace is not an e-commerce entity, but the 2020 Rules still place duties on such sellers, such as appointing a grievance officer. Several of the 2026 changes, such as seller information, consumer data consent and bundled fees, are written for marketplace entities.
The Rules also reach an entity not established in India if it systematically offers goods or services to consumers in India. Such an entity must name a nodal contact person who lives in India.
The 2026 changes sit on top of the 2020 Rules, which came into force on 23 July 2020. Those already require every e-commerce entity to have a grievance officer, who must acknowledge a complaint within 48 hours and resolve it within one month. They also require the total price in a single figure, with a breakup showing delivery, handling and tax. Penalties come from the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the parent law.
Pricing and promotions. Store the price history of every listing, so you can work out the lowest price in the 30 days before a sale is announced. Show that figure beside the new price. If a seller can edit prices freely, log each edit with a timestamp. The stored history is also your evidence if a regulator asks.
Search and ads. Label every sponsored result clearly. Keep a record of ranking changes, so you can show that you did not distort results in a way that misleads the user.
Design and growth. The 2023 dark patterns guidelines list 13 patterns, including false urgency and drip pricing. Run your checkout, countdown timers, add-on screens and subscription flows against that list, and keep the notes. The Rules ask for a yearly self-audit and a visible certificate, so the audit needs an owner and a calendar date. Our page on dark patterns and ethical design is a place to start.
Seller onboarding. Add required fields for best before or use before dates, return and refund terms, warranty, delivery and payment details, and block a listing from going live without them. For imported goods, add the importer's details and the country of origin.
Customer support. When a customer files a complaint, send back a copy of the complaint as recorded. Check that your grievance officer's tool can produce one.
Data and consent. Review every place where you reuse marketplace customer data, such as marketing, ad targeting or sharing with partners. If the use is one of the "specified purposes", you need express and affirmative consent. In practice that points to an unticked box and a clear question, not a pre-ticked box or a line buried in the terms.
Fees. If you bundle charges for services that do not belong to the platform, plan to remove them. If you run a loyalty or membership programme, read the exception carefully.
Ask a lawyer who knows consumer law to read the gazette text before you launch changes.
On 1 January 2027, according to the Department of Consumer Affairs release of 10 September 2026.
When a price reduction is announced, both the reduced price and the prior price must be shown. The prior price is the lowest price at which the item was offered during the 30 days before the announcement.
The 2020 Rules treat sellers as separate from the platform but still give them duties, such as appointing a grievance officer. Many 2026 changes are written for marketplace entities, so check the gazette text for seller-level duties.
Under the 2020 Rules, the grievance officer must acknowledge a complaint within 48 hours and resolve it within one month.
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