Can you ask customers for Google reviews? What's allowed in India
Two rulebooks apply: Google's policy, which decides whether your reviews stay up, and India's standard on online reviews, which is aimed at the platforms that publish them.
Yes. Google lets any business ask customers for reviews - by link, QR code, WhatsApp or in person. What it does not allow: offering anything in return, asking only happy customers, pressuring people on your premises, asking for particular words, staff quotas, or reviews from staff and family. India's review standard, IS 19000:2022, is voluntary and written for review platforms.
Sources: Google, Press Information Bureau (Department of Consumer Affairs)
Is this allowed? Pick what you have in mind
Each answer is Google's own policy, in plain words, with a link to the line it comes from. Of the 16 practices here, 5 are allowed, 9 are not, and 2 need care.
Source for this answer: see the table below. Every row there links to Google's page.
Sixteen ways businesses ask, checked against Google's policy
The line that matters most is short: Google allows merchants to solicit reviews of a genuine experience without offering incentives or trying to influence the rating or the contents. Everything below follows from it.
What happens to a profile that breaks the rules
Removing the reviews is only the start. For a business that breaks its fake engagement policy, Google lists restrictions it may place on the Business Profile, and says it will email the owner before applying one. The owner can appeal.
- No new reviews or ratings for a set period.
- Existing reviews and ratings unpublished for a set period.
- A warning on the profile telling customers that fake reviews were removed.
The warning is the one that costs most: it sits in front of every future customer who finds you on Maps.
Where India's standard on online reviews fits
In November 2022 the Department of Consumer Affairs launched IS 19000:2022, "Online Consumer Reviews - Principles and Requirements for their Collection, Moderation and Publication". The Bureau of Indian Standards notified it on 23 November 2022 as a voluntary standard for every online platform that publishes consumer reviews.
It is written for the review administrator - the platform - not for a shop asking its customers. It asks platforms to verify that a review author is real (by email, phone, SMS, single sign-on and similar checks), to moderate, and to keep a written code of practice. For a Google review, the platform is Google.
That may change. In May 2024 the Department said it seeks to make the standard mandatory through a Quality Control Order, and listed what the draft would prohibit - including that an organisation "shall not prevent or discourage people from submitting negative reviews". That is the same line Google draws against filtering unhappy customers away. As of 28 September 2026, that May 2024 statement is the latest we found on the Press Information Bureau; check for a notified order before relying on its status.
If a mandatory version does arrive, the government has said a breach may be treated as an unfair trade practice that consumers can take to the National Consumer Helpline, the Consumer Commissions or the CCPA.
This page explains published policy and government statements. It is not legal advice.
Review rules questions
Is it legal to ask customers for Google reviews in India?
Google allows it, and India’s standard on online reviews, IS 19000:2022, is voluntary and written for the platforms that publish reviews rather than the businesses being reviewed. What gets businesses into trouble is breaking Google’s own rules - offering something in return, filtering who gets asked, or pressuring people.
Sources: Google, Press Information Bureau (Department of Consumer Affairs)
Can I give a small gift to everyone, whether or not they review?
Google’s rule is about incentives in exchange for a review. A thank-you that every customer gets regardless is a different thing - but if the gift and the review request arrive together, a customer can reasonably read it as payment. The safe course is to keep the two apart.
Sources: Google
What happens if Google finds incentivised reviews?
Google removes the reviews and may restrict the Business Profile: stopping new reviews for a period, unpublishing existing ones for a period, or showing customers a warning that fake reviews were removed. It emails the owner first, and the owner can appeal.
Sources: Google
Can my staff ask customers for reviews?
Yes. What Google does not allow is giving staff a target number of reviews, or asking for reviews that mention a staff member by name. Staff asking everyone, with no quota and no script about stars, is fine.
Sources: Google
Does IS 19000:2022 apply to my shop?
It is written for organisations that publish consumer reviews online - the review administrator, which for a Google review is Google. It was notified as a voluntary standard in November 2022, and in May 2024 the Department of Consumer Affairs said it wanted to make it mandatory through a Quality Control Order.
Sources: Press Information Bureau (Department of Consumer Affairs), Press Information Bureau (Department of Consumer Affairs)
Beeps Card publishes this guide and sells a card with a Google review button.
Sources
Google's rules come from its own policy and help pages. Facts about IS 19000:2022 come from the Government of India's Press Information Bureau. Each was read on the date shown.
- Google, Prohibited & restricted content - Maps User Generated Content Policy. Checked .
- Google, Tips to get more reviews. Checked .
- Google, Business Profile restrictions for policy violations. Checked .
- Press Information Bureau (Department of Consumer Affairs), Centre launches framework for safeguarding and protecting consumer interest from fake and deceptive reviews in e-commerce (21 November 2022). Checked .
- Press Information Bureau (Department of Consumer Affairs), Bureau of Indian Standards notifies framework on fake and deceptive reviews (21 December 2022). Checked .
- Press Information Bureau (Department of Consumer Affairs), Stakeholder consultation on protection of consumers from online fake reviews (15 May 2024). Checked .