Budget airline IndiGo on Monday clarified that passengers will not have to compulsorily pay for their seats during web check-in. The airline’s clarification came after the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation said that it was reviewing airlines’ policies of charging customers for all seats during web check-in.

On Sunday, IndiGo and SpiceJet said that they will charge money for online check-in services but will continue to allocate seats for free for airports check-ins. IndiGo had said that the new policy has been in place since November 14 and that it was a “usual practice followed by airlines globally and across India”.

On Monday, however, IndiGo said it had not changed its web check-in practices. “This is to further clarify that IndiGo customers will not compulsorily have to pay for the seats,” IndiGo said in a statement, according to Mint. “The pricing is only for advance selection of seats. When the customer checks-in at the airport, the seats would be assigned for free.”

The “advance seat selection” process during web check-in is meant for passengers who would prefer seats extra leg-room or would like to be seated together on a flight. The airline said that if the passengers do not have any particular preference for seats and would not like to pay for advance seat selection, they can either choose free seats available at the time of web check-in or will be assigned seats during check-in at airports, reported The Indian Express.

The airline also said that the pricing for advance selection of seats is dynamic and may vary based on the type of aircraft, duration of the flight, occupancy and time left before departure.

The airline’s decision to charge passengers for all seats during web check-ins had led to angry reactions on social media. However, aviation experts said that airlines are allowed to charge as they wish as the Directorate General of Civil Aviation permits the unbundling of services.