1. INTRODUCTION

On September 9, 2026, the Department of Consumer Affairs (“DoCA”) notified the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) (Amendment) Rules, 2026 (“Amendment Rules”).[1] The Amendment Rules amend the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 (“E-Commerce Rules”),[2] which were made under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (“Act”). They will come into force on January 1, 2027.

This is the first substantive amendment to the E-Commerce Rules since they were notified in July 2020. The only earlier amendment, in May 2021, was limited to Rule 4(1).[3] In June 2021, DoCA had released draft amendments[4] that proposed, among other things, restrictions on flash sales, “fall-back liability” for marketplaces and mandatory registration of e-commerce entities. None of these proposals has been adopted.

However, several of the 2021 draft amendment proposals that targeted specific conduct have been carried over in almost identical words into the Amendment Rules, including the bar on manipulating search results, labelling of sponsored listings, the display of best before dates and identification of the country of origin.

Overall, the Amendment Rules are narrower. They focus on specific practices: how search results and sponsored listings are shown, how discounts are advertised, dark patterns, the use of platform data, bundled fees and the information that must be shown about sellers and products.

DoCA’s press release places the amendment in context. In 2025, the National Consumer Helpline (“NCH”) received 17,71,622 grievances, of which 5,11,196 (about 29%) related to e-commerce.[5] DoCA’s stated aim is to strengthen consumer protection without placing unnecessary burden on businesses.

This article explains the key changes, points out where the text is unclear and sets out what e-commerce entities and sellers should do before January 1, 2027.

II. KEY AMENDMENTS AT A GLANCE

The table below summarises the key changes introduced by the Amendment Rules and what each means for e-commerce entities. Each change is discussed in more detail in the sections that follow.

In short, the Amendment Rules require changes across product, pricing, technology, legal and customer service functions. Since the obligations are specific and can be checked objectively, e-commerce entities should begin implementation well before January 1, 2027.

III. KEY AMENDMENTS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS

A.    “Ranking” Now Covers Sellers

“Ranking” refers to how prominently a platform displays something to users. Earlier, the definition in Rule 3(1)(j) covered only goods and services. The amended definition also covers “the sellers on the platform”. As a result, the way a platform promotes particular sellers, for example by showing a featured or default seller or a “recommended seller” badge, is now expressly covered. This brings the definition in line with Rule 5(3)(f), which already required marketplaces to explain how “goods or sellers” are ranked.

Marketplaces are already required under Rule 5(3)(f) to explain the main factors that decide their rankings. They must now list those factors “in descending order”, that is, from the most important to the least important. Marketplaces already had to explain the relative importance of these factors, but the order must now be made explicit. As good practice, the disclosure should also be updated whenever the ranking system is changed in a material way.

B. Search Results and Sponsored Listings

The new sub-clause (c) of Rule 4(11) prohibits e-commerce entities from misleading users “by manipulating search result or search indexes having regard to the search query of the user”.

This does not prevent platforms from ranking results on commercial grounds. The test is whether users are misled, judged against what they searched for. The press release supports this reading. It describes the rule as barring manipulation that misleads users “or adversely affects the relevance of results to the user’s search query”.[6] Results that are commercially weighted but still relevant to the search should be acceptable. What is prohibited is showing unrelated or preferred products in response to a search without telling the user.

New Rule 4(12) requires sponsored listings to be “distinctly identified with clear and prominent disclosures”. Taken together, Rules 4(11)(c) and 4(12) make disclosure the deciding factor. A paid listing that is clearly labelled is unlikely to mislead. A paid listing mixed into ordinary search results without a label may breach both rules. This is in line with the prohibition on “disguised advertisement” under the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023 (“Dark Patterns Guidelines”).[7]

The Amendment Rules do not specify the form, position or size of the label. The Central Consumer Protection Authority (“CCPA”) is likely to judge whether a label is “clear and prominent” from the point of view of an ordinary consumer, taking into account the device on which the listing is seen.

C. Displaying Discounts: The “Prior Price” Rule

Under new Rule 4(13), whenever an e-commerce entity or seller announces a price reduction, it must show the “prior price” alongside the reduced price. The prior price is “the lowest price of a good or service thirty days prior to the announcement of price reduction”.

The rule is aimed at a common practice: raising the list price shortly before a sale so that the discount looks larger than it is. A similar rule applies in the European Union, where the prior price is the lowest price applied during a period of not less than 30 (thirty) days before the reduction.[8] The text, however, leaves four questions open:

(a) One day or the whole period: Read literally, the definition could mean the price on the single day 30 (thirty) days before the announcement. The press release describes it as the lowest price “during the 30 days preceding the announcement”.[9] The second reading reflects the purpose of the rule and is the safer approach to follow.

(b) Which price counts: The rule does not say whether the lowest price is to be taken for the specific listing, for all sellers of the same product on the platform or across all sales channels. On a marketplace with several sellers, each approach can give a different result. Until this is clarified, the safest approach is to use the lowest price of the specific listing on the platform where the discount is announced.

(c) New products: The rule does not deal with products listed for less than 30 (thirty) days. For such products, entities should avoid advertising a “price reduction” unless they can show a genuine earlier price. By comparison, the EU rules allow Member States to set a shorter reference period for goods that have been on the market for less than 30 (thirty) days.

(d) Sellers: Rule 4 applies to “e-commerce entities”, which, under Rule 3(1)(b), does not include sellers on a marketplace. Rule 4(13) still refers to discounts announced by “the seller”. In practice, marketplaces will have to enforce the rule on their sellers through their contracts and systems. Sellers also remain directly liable under the Act, since a misleading discount is an unfair trade practice under Section 2(47).

To comply, pricing systems will need to keep at least 30 (thirty) days of price history for each listing and show the prior price whenever a discount is announced. Any percentage discount should also be calculated from the prior price. This is the approach the Court of Justice of the European Union has taken under the equivalent EU rule.[10]

D. Dark Patterns: Self-Audit Becomes Mandatory

Dark patterns are design practices that trick or pressure users into doing something they did not intend. New Rule 4(15) requires every e-commerce entity to comply with the Dark Patterns Guidelines, to carry out a self-audit every year to confirm that its platform is free from dark patterns and to display a certificate to that effect prominently.

This is the most important change in the Amendment Rules. The Dark Patterns Guidelines, issued by the CCPA, list 13 (thirteen) dark patterns, including false urgency, basket sneaking (adding items to a cart without the user’s consent), drip pricing (revealing charges in stages), subscription traps and disguised advertisements. The CCPA through its advisory dated June 05, 2025, advised platforms to carry out self-audits within 3 (three) months and to declare their compliance,[11] and 26 (twenty-six) platforms have since done so, relying on internal or third-party audits.[12] What was an advisory is now a binding annual requirement. A breach of the Dark Patterns Guidelines will also be a breach of the E-Commerce Rules, to which the Act applies under Rule 8. The Dark Patterns Guidelines were already framed as prohibitions, but making them part of the E-Commerce Rules removes any doubt about whether they can be enforced.

There are two practical consequences. First, the certificate is a public statement made to consumers. If a platform displays the certificate while dark patterns remain on its platform, the certificate itself may be treated as a false statement and a separate unfair trade practice. The self-audit must therefore be genuine, recorded in writing and ready to be produced before the CCPA. Second, the Amendment Rules do not say who should carry out the audit, how it should be done or what the certificate should contain. Entities should follow a written audit process that checks the platform against each listed dark pattern, have it approved at a senior level and keep a record of it.

E. Use of Platform Data and Platform-Own Brands

Under new Rule 5(6), a marketplace e-commerce entity cannot use the information it collects: (a) for the sale of goods, directly or indirectly, by any seller, whether related or not, that carry a brand or name common with that of the marketplace; or (b) to promote or advertise any seller as being associated with the marketplace, unless the consumers to whom the information relates have given express and affirmative consent.

Clause (a) is aimed at marketplaces using their data to benefit their own brands, often called private labels. It is wide in scope. “Information collected by it” is not limited to personal data and would include sales, search and pricing data. This is because Rule 3(1) gives “information” the wide meaning it has under Section 2(1)(v) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The press release describes the rule as restricting the use of “consumer information”, but the text of the rule is not limited in this way.[13] The words “whether related or not” mean that the restriction cannot be avoided by selling the platform-branded goods through an unrelated seller or licensee. The rule sits alongside the foreign direct investment policy, which already prevents marketplaces from owning or controlling the inventory sold on them[14], and responds to concerns about marketplaces favouring their own products.

The position of the consent exception matters. In the notified text, the words “unless the marketplace e-commerce entity has obtained the express and affirmative consent …” appear only in clause (b). On a plain reading, consent is an exception only to clause (b), and clause (a) is an absolute prohibition. This also makes sense: consumer consent is not a natural fit for a rule aimed at marketplaces favouring their own brands, and it could never cover seller or sales data, which does not belong to consumers. Marketplaces should therefore not rely on consumer consent to use marketplace data for their own brands.

Where consent is relied on under clause (b), it must be “express and affirmative”. This is similar to Rule 4(9), which requires consent to be “expressed through an explicit and affirmative action”, and to the standard for valid consent under Section 6 of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, which is being brought into force in phases.[15] Pre-ticked boxes or consents bundled with other terms will not be enough. Clause (a) also applies only to “goods”. Services offered under the marketplace’s brand are not covered by clause (a), although clause (b) may still apply.

F. Bundled Fees

New Rule 5(7) prohibits a marketplace e-commerce entity from charging users “bundled fees”, that is, adding charges for services unrelated to the platform to the fees for services provided on the platform. Loyalty and membership programmes, and any benefits offered under them, are excluded.

The rule does not prohibit platform, convenience or handling fees for services connected with the platform. Such fees must still be disclosed under Rule 5(3)(d) and must not be revealed in stages, which would amount to drip pricing under the Dark Patterns Guidelines.

“Bundled fees” is not defined, and whether a service is “unrelated to the e-commerce platform” will depend on the facts. The exception for membership programmes is broad and covers even unrelated services offered as membership benefits. It is not, however, a complete safe harbour. A membership that is added automatically, pre-selected at checkout or difficult to cancel may still amount to a subscription trap or basket sneaking under the Dark Patterns Guidelines, which now apply through Rule 4(15).

G. Grievance Redressal and the National Consumer Helpline

The grievance officer must still acknowledge a complaint within 48 (forty-eight) hours and resolve it within 1 (one) month. Under amended Rule 4(5), the grievance officer must also give the consumer a copy of the complaint as recorded. The consumer will then have a record of how the complaint was captured, which may be useful as evidence before a consumer commission. Platforms that summarise or reclassify complaints should make sure the recorded version is accurate, since the consumer will now see it.

Under amended Rule 4(7), joining the NCH convergence process is now mandatory. Earlier, e-commerce entities were only required to make “best effort” attempts to join. DoCA has described this as a key provision of the Amendment Rules.[16] Entities that are not yet part of the process should start onboarding well before January 1, 2027.

H. Seller, Product and Invoice Disclosures

The remaining amendments require more information to be shown to consumers:

(a) Entity information (Rule 4(2)): The required details must be displayed “at an appropriate place” on the platform. The requirement to show a fax number has been removed.

(b) Imported goods (Rule 4(6)): Along with importer details, e-commerce entities must enable identification of imported goods and state the full name of the country of origin, as required under the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011.

(c) Seller details (Rule 5(3)(a)): Marketplaces must also show the seller’s website details and email address, where available.

(d) Best before or use before date (Rules 5(3)(c), 6(5)(d) and 7(1)(a)): Marketplaces, sellers and inventory entities must show this date. For food products, this is subject to the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and the regulations made under it. Rule 6(5)(d) now also brings together the return, refund, exchange, warranty, delivery, return shipping and payment information that sellers already had to provide under other clauses of Rule 6(5).

(e) Identification numbers (Rule 6(5)(j)): Sellers must provide, for display on the platform, “any identification number issued by the Central Government including” the GSTIN or MSME registration number. Read literally, “any” could require sellers to disclose every such number, including PAN, which raises privacy concerns for individual sellers. Sellers already have to give their PAN to the e-commerce entity under Rule 6(4), but not for display. The better view is that the rule is directed at the GSTIN and MSME registration number (in practice, the Udyam Registration Number), but clarification would help.

(f) Invoices (Rule 4(14)): The seller’s name must appear clearly and prominently on the invoice, in the same font size as the name of the e-commerce entity. This addresses invoices where the platform’s branding dominates and the actual seller is hard to identify. Invoice templates will need to be updated.

IV. ENFORCEMENT

Under Rule 8, the provisions of the Act apply to any breach of the E-Commerce Rules. The CCPA can investigate unfair trade practices, order them to be stopped under Section 20 and, under Section 21, impose a penalty on a manufacturer or endorser of a false or misleading advertisement of up to INR 10,00,000 (Indian Rupees Ten Lakh), which may extend to INR 50,00,000 (Indian Rupees Fifty Lakh) for each subsequent breach. This penalty applies only to advertisements, so it will not cover many of the new obligations. Failure to comply with a direction of the CCPA under Section 20 and Section 21 is an offence under Section 88, punishable with imprisonment of up to 6 (six) months, a fine of up to INR 20,00,000 (Indian Rupees Twenty Lakh), or both. False or misleading advertisements are also an offence under Section 89. Consumers can also file complaints before consumer commissions, where a breach of the E-Commerce Rules is likely to be used to show an unfair trade practice or deficiency in service.

V. NEXT STEPS FOR E-COMMERCE ENTITIES PRIOR TO JANUARY 1, 2027

With about 3 (three) months left before the Amendment Rules take effect, e-commerce entities should prioritise the following:

• Pricing: E-commerce entities should update their pricing systems to keep 30 (thirty) days of price history for each listing and show the prior price with every announced discount. Discount banners, strike-through prices and sale campaigns should be checked against this price history before launch, and the method used to calculate the prior price should be recorded in writing.

• Search and sponsored listings: E-commerce entities should check that sponsored listings are clearly labelled and that search results remain relevant to what the user searched for. This review should cover how sponsored results are placed among ordinary results, particularly on mobile screens, where labels are often less visible.

• Ranking disclosure: Marketplaces should update their ranking disclosure to list the ranking factors from most to least important and to cover how sellers are ranked. The disclosure should be in plain language, and an internal process should be put in place to update it whenever the ranking system changes materially.

• Dark patterns: E-commerce entities should carry out and record a self-audit against each dark pattern listed in the Dark Patterns Guidelines, and finalise the certificate to be displayed. The audit should cover the entire user journey, including search, checkout, cancellation and subscription management, and should be approved at a senior level before the certificate is displayed.

• Use of data: Marketplaces should put internal controls in place to stop marketplace data being used for goods sold under the platform’s own brand or name. Teams handling own-brand goods should not have access to seller-level sales, search and pricing data, and consent flows relied on under Rule 5(6)(b) should be checked to ensure that no consent is pre-ticked or bundled with other terms.

• Fees: Marketplaces should review all fees against Rule 5(7), particularly charges for services unrelated to the platform that are not part of a genuine loyalty or membership programme. Each fee should be linked to a service provided on the platform, and membership programmes should require users to opt in actively and allow them to cancel easily.

• Grievance redressal: E-commerce entities should update their grievance processes so that consumers receive a copy of their complaint as recorded, and complete onboarding with the NCH. Grievance teams should be trained to record complaints accurately, since the consumer will now receive the recorded version.

• Seller agreements: Marketplaces should amend their seller agreements and onboarding processes to collect the additional information required under Rule 6(5), with suitable undertakings and indemnities from sellers. Sellers should also be contractually required to comply with the prior price rule and to keep the information they provide up to date.

• Invoices: E-commerce entities should update their invoice templates to comply with Rule 4(14), so that the seller’s name appears clearly and in the same font size as the name of the e-commerce entity.

VI. CONCLUSION

The Amendment Rules keep the conduct-based proposals of the 2021 draft and drop the structural ones. Instead of changing how the e-commerce market is structured, DoCA has chosen to regulate the specific points where consumers are most often misled: search, ranking, discounts, platform design and fees. Most of the new requirements can be checked objectively, which will make them easier to enforce and harder to defend against.

Some provisions still need clarification from DoCA or the CCPA before January 1, 2027, particularly how the prior price is to be calculated, the scope of the consent exception in Rule 5(6), the meaning of “bundled fees” and the extent of the identification number requirement. Until then, e-commerce entities should follow the interpretation that best protects consumers, since that is the interpretation regulators are more likely to favour.