Why RTI is (essentially) free — and why you don't need to pay anyone
Direct answer. RTI in India costs Rs. 10 in statutory fee — that's all the government charges. Paid filing services add Rs. 150-1,500 on top, mostly for drafting work that a free AI drafter now does in 60 seconds. You don't need a lawyer; you don't need a paid service for routine RTIs.
The honest cost of an RTI in India
| What you pay | Amount | To whom |
| Statutory filing fee | Rs. 10 | Government (Accounts Officer of the public authority) |
| Higher fee in 4 states (TN, PB, HR + ₹20 in GJ) | Rs. 20-50 | Same |
| Speed Post (if posting) | Rs. 30-50 | India Post |
| IPO commission | Rs. 1-3 | India Post |
| Total per RTI | Rs. 11-100 | — |
| BPL applicant | ₹0 (exempt under §7(5)) | — |
That's it. Nobody else legally has to be paid.
What paid filing services charge (and what they actually do)
Paid services charge Rs. 150-1,500 per application for:
- Drafting the application text (now AI-generated for free in 60 seconds).
- Filling in your personal details (5 minutes of your own typing).
- Posting the envelope (Rs. 30 Speed Post + Rs. 10 IPO).
- Tracking the response (you can track Speed Post yourself).
The work they save you: roughly 20 minutes. The savings vs DIY: ₹150-1,500 of their fee, or about ₹450-4,500/hour for the time saved.
Why we built free tools that match (or beat) paid services
In 2024, paid services made sense — drafting required statutory fluency. Today:
- Our AI RTI Drafter generates a legally-correct §6(1) application from a plain-English description in 60 seconds.
- AwaazRTI lets you speak in Hindi/Marathi/Tamil and outputs a typed RTI.
- Outcome Predictor scores your draft 0-100 BEFORE filing — equivalent to a paralegal review.
- First Appeal Builder auto-fills §19(1) — paid services charge separately for this.
The gap closed. If you can read this page, you can file an RTI for free.
When paid services may still help (small subset)
We're not anti-paid-services. They genuinely help if:
- You have mobility or vision constraints that prevent operating a phone.
- You need multi-state coordinated filing (e.g., 36 RTIs to all 36 SICs at once).
- You explicitly want hand-holding — some people prefer a human reading their case.
- Your case is exotically complex — multi-section requests with §11 third-party + §8(2) override + judicial overlay.
For routine citizen RTIs (driving licence stuck, EPF withdrawal pending, property mutation delayed, ration card issue) — there's no value-add justifying the fee. DIY with our tools strictly dominates on cost, speed, and learning value.
How we keep RTI Wiki free
- No filing fees from users — ever.
- AdSense + community donations cover server + AI API costs.
- CPD course is free — funded by the same model.
- No paywalled content — every article, tool, and case-law citation is open.
- Source visible — every claim cites the Act, a SC/HC order, or a CIC ruling.
If you find this useful, the only ask: share with one friend who needs help filing. The WhatsApp share button (bottom-right of every page) makes it 1-tap.
FAQs
Is RTI free in India?
The statutory fee is ₹10 (₹20-50 in 4 states). BPL applicants are entirely exempt. The application itself is “free” — the only charge is the small fee to the government, which exists to discourage frivolous filings (and even that is being debated).
Why do paid RTI filing services exist?
Historically, drafting an RTI required statutory fluency. Today, free AI drafters match what paid services produce. They survive on (a) brand recognition, (b) helping users who don't know free alternatives exist, © genuinely complex multi-state cases.
Is RTI Wiki affiliated with the government?
No. RTI Wiki is an independent, citizen-side reference. We have no authority to receive your RTI — you must file with the actual PIO of the relevant department.
Do I need a lawyer?
No. The RTI Act was designed for citizens to file directly. Lawyers add no statutory advantage. Our AI Drafter generates the same draft a lawyer would produce.
What does the Rs. 10 fee actually go to?
The Accounts Officer of the public authority. The fee discourages frivolous filings and partly offsets administrative cost. There's no per-page copy fee for the first 50 pages; beyond that, ₹2-5/page under §7(3).
Take action — for free
- 🪄 Draft your first RTI now (60 seconds)
Related
- RTI Wiki vs filemyrti.com — honest comparison
- DIY vs paid RTI service — when paid still helps
Last reviewed: 24 April 2026.