Terms of Service & Terms of Use
Terms of service, also called terms of use or terms and conditions, are the contract between a business and the people who use its website, app or platform. They set out what users may and may not do, what the business promises and excludes, how payments, cancellations and refunds work, and how disputes are resolved.
Online terms are enforceable in India as electronic contracts when users clearly accept them. Platforms that host user content must publish terms under the Intermediary Rules, 2021, and online sellers must display certain information under the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020. Terms that are unfair to consumers can be challenged under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
When you need it
When launching a website, app or SaaS product
Terms set the rules of use from day one: who may use the service, what they may not do with it, and what the business is and is not responsible for.
When taking payments or subscriptions
Pricing, billing cycles, renewals, cancellations and refunds need clear terms, and online sellers must display their return and refund policy.
When users post content
A platform that hosts reviews, comments, listings or uploads is an intermediary, and must publish its rules, privacy policy and user agreement.
When selling to businesses
Business customers will read the service levels, liability caps, data processing terms and intellectual property clauses, and often ask to negotiate them.
When the terms were copied
Terms copied from a foreign site often cite laws and courts that do not apply in India, and miss the Indian rules on intermediaries and e-commerce.
How the process works
Six stages, from how the product works to publishing the terms. Timings are typical, not promised.
- 1
Understand the product
Usually a few daysMap how people use the website or app: accounts, payments, subscriptions, content users upload, communications, age of users, and whether the business sells to consumers, businesses or both.
Documents
- Access to the website or app, or a walkthrough
- Current terms, pricing and refund practice
- 2
Identify the rules that apply
Alongside the reviewConfirm which laws shape the terms: the Indian Contract Act, the Information Technology Act and its intermediary rules, the Consumer Protection Act and e-commerce rules, sector rules, and the DPDP Act for the privacy policy the terms link to.
- 3
Draft the terms
One to two weeksCover eligibility and age, accounts, acceptable use, user content and licences, intellectual property, fees and refunds, disclaimers, limitation of liability, suspension and termination, changes to the terms, governing law, dispute resolution and the grievance officer.
- 4
Design how users accept
Alongside the draftTerms are strongest when users actively accept them, for example by ticking a box or tapping "I agree" at sign-up or checkout, with a record kept of the version accepted. Terms that are only linked in a footer are harder to enforce.
- 5
Align with the other policies
Before publicationMake sure the terms, the privacy policy, the refund or cancellation policy and any service-level terms say the same thing and link to each other.
- 6
Publish and review
On launch, then at least once a yearPublish the terms where users can find them, set out how changes will be notified, and review them when the product, the pricing or the law changes.
Common questions
Not every website is legally required to have them, but any site or app where people create accounts, pay, post content or rely on information should. Platforms that host user content must publish terms under the Intermediary Rules, and online sellers must display their terms of sale.
Yes, as electronic contracts under the Information Technology Act and the Indian Contract Act, provided users had a fair chance to read them and clearly accepted them. Active acceptance, such as a tick box, is much easier to prove than terms that are only linked in a footer.
The same core as a website, with app-specific points: the licence to use the app, in-app purchases and subscriptions, app permissions, updates, the app stores’ own rules, and how an account can be deleted.
You can, but templates rarely match how a particular business works, and terms that are unclear are usually read against the business that wrote them. The terms also need to fit the privacy policy and refund policy.
Terms of service are a contract setting out the rules for using the service. A privacy policy is a notice explaining how personal data is handled, which the law requires in its own right. They should link to each other.
Within limits. Terms can cap liability and exclude some losses, especially between businesses. With consumers, terms that are one-sided can be challenged as unfair contract terms under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
Under Indian law a person under 18 cannot enter into a binding contract, so terms usually require users to be adults or to use the service with a parent’s consent. Services used by children also have separate duties under the DPDP Act.
Related
To discuss terms of service, write to info@ireniclegal.com or call +91 96547 47331. Written by Adv. Kanika Marwaha Bindal; last updated 29 September 2026.