• Central RTI (Regulation of Fee and Cost) Rules, 2005 — fee structure, mode of payment, inspection charges, copy charges. Rule 3 sets the Rs 10 application fee, Rule 4 the copy and inspection charges.
• Central Information Commission (Management) Regulations, 2007 — procedure for second appeals under Section 19(3) and complaints under Section 18 before the CIC.
• DoPT circulars and guidelines — procedural instructions to Central PIOs and First Appellate Authorities.
• RTI (Amendment) Act, 2019 and the RTI Rules, 2019 — revised terms and conditions of service for Information Commissioners.
• The 2005 first-appeal rules — Rule 5 of the Central Rules prescribes the appeal format under Section 19(1).

Competent authorities under Section 28 frame their own rules.

• Supreme Court of India Rules under Section 28 — framed by the Chief Justice of India. Governs inspection of administrative-side records; judicial records follow separate Supreme Court Rules, 2013.
• High Court rules (each High Court) — linked to from each High Court website. High Court rules typically mirror Central rules on fees but vary on appellate procedure.

Each State Government has framed its own rules on fee structure, application format, and first-appeal procedure. The full index of State pages on this site follows. For fees and direct online-filing links, see RTI Fees by State (2026).

• Delhi
• Haryana
• Himachal Pradesh
• Jammu and Kashmir
• Ladakh
• Punjab
• Uttar Pradesh
• Uttarakhand

• Gujarat
• Maharashtra
• Rajasthan
• Goa

• Andhra Pradesh
• Karnataka
• Kerala
• Tamil Nadu
• Telangana

• Bihar
• Jharkhand
• Odisha
• West Bengal

• Chhattisgarh
• Madhya Pradesh
• Arunachal Pradesh
• Assam
• Manipur
• Meghalaya
• Mizoram
• Nagaland
• Sikkim
• Tripura

• Chandigarh
• Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu — covered by Central-aligned rules with local notification variations. Refer to the Union Territory Secretariat.

The Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025 were notified on 14 November 2025. These rules are not made under the RTI Act. However, Section 44(3) of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, which became operational on notification of these rules, substituted the proviso to Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act.

• What changed: The 2005 proviso carving out “information which cannot be denied to Parliament or a State Legislature” was removed. Privacy-based refusals under Section 8(1)(j) now follow a narrower path.
• Practitioner notes:
  • DPDP Rules 2025: the amendment to Section 8(1)(j)
  • PIO reply after DPDP 2025: the 5-question test
• Case law to cite: Girish Ramchandra Deshpande, K.S. Puttaswamy (2017).

The RTI (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act No. 24 of 2019, commenced 24 October 2019) replaced Sections 13(1), 13(2), 13(5), 16(1), 16(2), 16(5), and parts of Section 27 of the RTI Act.

• Impact: Tenure and conditions of service of Central and State Information Commissioners moved from fixed to Central Government-prescribed.
• Note on act.txt: The RTI Act page on this site carries inline amendment overlays at each affected section. See The RTI Act, 2005 (as amended).

No. The Central fee is Rs 10 under Central Rules. States have their own rules under Section 27; most charge Rs 10, a few charge Rs 50 or Rs 20 (see the fees page above). A State can never waive the Section 7(5) BPL exemption.

Most States follow Rs 2 per A4 page. A higher charge needs a State notification. If a department demands an unjustified higher rate, refuse and include the refusal as a ground in your first appeal.

Yes, for judicial-side records. Administrative-side records of these institutions follow Central-aligned procedures. See the separate rules linked above.

• The RTI Act, 2005 (as amended)
• RTI Fees by State and Online Portal Directory
• State RTI Portals Directory (reliability grades)
• File RTI Online in India: 12 Steps
• Central vs State RTI: Which Should You File?
• First RTI template
• First Appeal template
• Why RTI gets rejected and fixes
• Inspection of records: fees + procedure

1. The Right to Information Act, 2005, Sections 6, 7(5), 19, 27, 28.
2. The Central RTI (Regulation of Fee and Cost) Rules, 2005.
3. The RTI (Amendment) Act, 2019 (No. 24 of 2019), in force 24 October 2019.
4. The Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025, notified 14 November 2025, in force immediately.
5. Central Information Commission (Management) Regulations, 2007 (as amended).
6. State Government Gazette notifications (verified April 2026).
7. Supreme Court of India, Rules under Section 28 of the RTI Act.

Last reviewed on: 20 April 2026