Department of Consumer Affairs Enables GST Grievance Redressal via National Consumer Helpline

SDG 12: Responsible Consumption & Production | SDG 16: Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions
Institutions: Ministry of Consumer Affairs

The Department of Consumer Affairs has integrated a dedicated GST grievance redressal category into the National Consumer Helpline (NCH), in line with the Next-Gen GST Reforms 2025. Starting 22 September 2025, consumers may register GST-related complaints in sub-categories such as Automobiles, Banking, E-commerce, FMCG, and Consumer Durables via the INGRAM portal. To prepare, CBIC officials trained NCH counsellors on 11 September, and a stakeholder consultation on 17 September brought together industry, consumer groups, and e-commerce platforms. The Helpline accessible via multiple digital and offline modes now supports complaint registration in 17 languages and shares aggregated complaint data with CBIC and relevant firms, aiming to strengthen GST compliance and participatory governance.

Embedding GST grievance resolution in the national helpline enhances consumer protection, builds transparency in tax administration, and can help enforce pass-through of rate cuts. It also deepens cooperative governance between revenue, consumer bodies, and private sector.

Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: How can this mechanism be calibrated further (e.g. with real-time dashboards, complaint-to-resolution tracking) to ensure consumer benefit from GST reform translates quickly into market behaviour?

Follow the full press release here: PIB: Department Enables GST Grievance Redressal on NCH

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