Service charge in restaurants not mandatory, says govt. guidelines

Service charge in restaurants not mandatory, says govt. guidelines

New Delhi: Service charge on hotel and restaurant bills is "totally voluntary" and not mandatory, Food and consumer affairs minister Ram Vilas Paswan said on Friday after the government approved guidelines on service charge.

Hotels and restaurants will not decide on service charge to be levied but it will be at a customer's discretion, the minister said, adding that these guidelines will be sent to states for necessary action.

"The government has approved guidelines on service charge. As per the guidelines, service charge is totally voluntary and not mandatory now," Paswan said in a tweet.