New Delhi: Marking one year since its establishment, the Indian Influencer Governance Council (IIGC) has introduced the Indian Influencer Contract Standard (IICS), India’s first standardised contract framework for influencer-brand collaborations. Developed and issued by IIGC along with legal knowledge partners Trilegal, the IICS aims to institutionalise brand-creator partnerships and address inconsistencies in how influencer engagements are executed across India’s rapidly expanding creator ecosystem.
While influencer marketing has evolved into a key pillar of brand strategy, many collaborations continue to rely on informal arrangements or varied templates that often fail to interpret scope and obligations correctly. This has led to recurring challenges around payment structures, intellectual property ownership and usage rights, revisions and approvals, exclusivity, morality clauses and dispute resolution.
The IICS seeks to establish a neutral, industry-level contractual baseline, bringing greater clarity and alignment to these areas for all stakeholders. The framework includes legal and commercial provisions specifically relevant to influencer-brand partnerships, while retaining flexibility for campaign-specific negotiation through an additional Statement of Work.
Addressing Recurring Industry Frictions
The IICS framework addresses several common points of friction in influencer campaigns, including:
- Clear Statement of Work and revision processes
- Content ownership and usage rights
- Disclosures and compliance obligations
- Clear payment clauses, including timelines, performance-linked payments and structured escalation mechanisms
- Prohibition on paid or artificial methods to inflate campaign performance
- A structured approach to morality and reputational considerations
The framework also incorporates a dispute resolution mechanism, with the first step being mediation through IIGC’s Task Force. This mediation stage is designed to help resolve issues before they escalate, potentially mitigating financial and reputational risks for both brands and creators.
IIGC clarified that the IICS is not a mandate or enforcement mechanism and does not eliminate risks entirely. Instead, it is intended to serve as a foundational structure that reduces ambiguity and supports sustainable, long-term creator-brand relationships.
“As influencer marketing transactions become more sophisticated, the absence of structured contractual clarity increases both financial and reputational risk. It is critical to have agreements to help define payment obligations, intellectual property boundaries, and dispute mechanisms upfront, reducing ambiguity and preventing escalation. An industry-aligned framework such as this can bring much-needed structure to a rapidly evolving sector. Of course, there cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach; however, certain broad contours have been outlined in this agreement and can be flexibly customised to suit specific circumstances,” said Yogesh Singh, Partner and Head of Corporate Practice, Trilegal.
“In the recent past, influencer marketing in India has grown from experimental budgets to a core pillar of brand strategy. As the industry matures, informal arrangements are no longer sustainable. Payment clarity, defined usage rights, and structured dispute mechanisms are not optional, but foundational to long-term trust. We believe it is time for brands and creators alike to adopt common standards that reflect the commercial scale and responsibility this ecosystem now carries,” shared Sahil Chopra, Chairman, IIGC.
One Year of Governance-Led Growth
The release of IICS coincides with IIGC completing its first year of operations. Founded on the belief that India’s creator economy requires governance alongside growth, IIGC’s first year focused on building foundational infrastructure. This includes India’s first Code of Standards for Brands, Influencers & Consumers, the IIGC Certified Influencer Programme, IIGC Protect, and IIGC Talks podcasts.
Over the past year, the council has prioritised standards-setting, industry participation and ecosystem engagement, positioning the IICS as a next step in formalising and strengthening India’s influencer marketing landscape.
