The Goods and Services Tax (GST), which was implemented in India in 2017, was a significant change to the nation's tax system, substituting a single indirect tax for several tax system. This study examines how GST affects customer behavior, concentrating on This study investigates how tax-inclusive GST pricing influences student enrollment decisions in online educational courses Using a quantitative cross-sectional design, data were collected from 120 competitive examination students in India considering online course enrollment. The study develops and empirically tests two hypotheses examining: (1) the mediating role of perceived price fairness in the relationship between GST pricing transparency and purchase intention, and (2) the mediating effect of perceived value in the relationship between perceived price fairness and student satisfaction. SEM analysis via AMOS 26.0 yielded excellent model fit (χ²/df = 1.824, CFI = 0.946, TLI = 0.938, RMSEA = 0.056, SRMR = 0.052). H1 was fully supported: GST pricing transparency significantly influenced perceived price fairness (β = 0.615, p < .001), which in turn significantly influenced purchase intention (β = 0.421, p < .001); the indirect effect (β = 0.259, 95% CI 0.148, 0.372) accounted for 52.1% of the total effect. H2 was also supported: perceived price fairness significantly influenced perceived value (β = 0.617, p < .001), which significantly influenced student satisfaction (β = 0.480, p < .001); the indirect effect (β = 0.296, 95% CI 0.181, 0.415) accounted for 51.0% of the total effect. Findings provide theoretical contributions and practical guidance for online education providers to leverage GST pricing transparency as a competitive strategy.
Shivalingam et al. (Wed,) studied this question.