Food Delivery Just Got Costlier: GST Ruling Could Hurt Workers and Customers
Food delivery apps Zomato and Swiggy may soon get costlier for both customers and delivery partners, all thanks to a fresh GST Council ruling.
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According to the clarification, platforms will now have to pay 18% GST on delivery charges collected from users — a tax that was earlier outside their scope. This adds up to an extra ₹180–200 crore every year for each company.
What Changed?
Until now, delivery fees were passed directly to gig workers, and companies argued it wasn’t really their revenue. The government has now stepped in, saying delivery itself is a taxable service, and the responsibility to pay GST lies with the platforms, not the workers.
Who Pays the Price?
And here’s the tricky part — Zomato and Swiggy don’t want this massive bill to eat into their margins. So, insiders say they’re planning two moves:
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Cutting payouts to delivery workers.
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Raising delivery charges for customers.
In short, riders could take home less, and your evening pizza might just cost a little more.
Why It Matters
For delivery workers, already juggling long hours for uncertain pay, this could make things tougher. For customers, it might mean higher platform fees, especially with the festive season around the corner when demand usually spikes.
The government, on the other hand, sees this as closing a tax loophole that had left gig services in a grey area for years.