Council urges BIS and the Government to retain the existing ₹45 hallmarking fee pending stakeholder consultation, saying enforcement and affordability should take priority over higher compliance costs.
Key Highlights
- GJC opposes the 67% increase in gold hallmarking charges from ₹45 to ₹75 per article.
- The Council seeks an immediate Government and BIS review.
- GJC continues to support hallmarking but opposes higher compliance costs without justification.
- More than 60 crore HUID gold articles have already been hallmarked.
- Mandatory hallmarking now covers 380 districts.
- GJC cites multiple BIS enforcement actions against fake hallmarking across India.
- The Council proposes seven policy recommendations, including retaining the ₹45 fee pending review.
The All India Gem & Jewellery Domestic Council (GJC) has urged the Government of India and the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to immediately review the recently notified increase in gold hallmarking charges from ₹45 to ₹75 per article, describing the nearly 67% hike as unwarranted without first addressing structural issues within the hallmarking ecosystem.
The increase follows the Bureau of Indian Standards (Hallmarking) Amendment Regulations, 2026, notified on 14 September 2026, under which the hallmarking fee payable to recognised Assaying and Hallmarking Centres (AHCs) has been revised to ₹75 per gold article.
According to GJC, the issue is not hallmarking itself. The Council reiterated its longstanding support for hallmarking as a vital consumer-protection mechanism, but argued that a sharp increase in the cost of mandatory compliance requires transparent justification at a time when hallmarking volumes and geographical coverage have already expanded significantly.
Hallmarking Growth Should Deliver Greater Efficiency
Citing Government data (PIB), GJC noted that more than 60 crore gold articles had been hallmarked with HUID between 1 July 2021 and 5 March 2026, while mandatory hallmarking had expanded to 380 districts by March 2026.
The Council argued that such growth in volumes should ordinarily result in greater operational efficiencies and economies of scale, making a substantial increase in the per-article fee difficult to justify without a transparent assessment of the underlying cost structure.
Enforcement Issues Need Greater Attention
GJC said increasing the prescribed hallmarking fee does not address several existing challenges affecting the hallmarking ecosystem.
The Council pointed to industry feedback regarding aggressive discounting, commercial inducements and unhealthy competition among certain service providers competing for hallmarking volumes.
More importantly, GJC highlighted BIS enforcement actions across multiple states as evidence that fake hallmarking, unauthorised centres and non-compliance continue to remain significant concerns.
Recent enforcement actions cited by the Council include:
- Seizure of non-hallmarked jewellery in Ambattur, Chennai.
- Detection of over 5.4 kg of allegedly fake-hallmarked jewellery in Panruti and an unauthorised hallmarking centre in Chidambaram.
- Seizure of approximately 1.6 kg of non-compliant gold jewellery in Hyderabad.
- Raids involving alleged fake hallmarking and invalid registrations in Ahmedabad.
- Action against alleged fake hallmarking centres in Guwahati and Goalpara.
- Seizure of jewellery carrying spurious hallmark symbols without valid HUID in Kanyakumari.
According to GJC, these cases demonstrate that stronger surveillance, stricter enforcement and better governance should be the immediate priority rather than increasing costs for already compliant jewellers.
Compliance Costs Should Not Widen the Formal-Informal Gap
The Council cautioned that higher compliance costs can unintentionally widen the economic gap between compliant businesses and unauthorised operators.
It argued that hallmarking should remain commercially sustainable so that genuine compliance becomes economically preferable, while stronger enforcement makes non-compliance increasingly unattractive.
According to GJC, increasing the hallmarking fee without simultaneously addressing fake hallmarking, unauthorised centres and market distortions risks creating the opposite incentive.
Lightweight Jewellery Faces a Bigger Burden
GJC also highlighted the disproportionate impact on lightweight jewellery.
Since hallmarking charges are levied per article regardless of weight, the same ₹75 fee applies whether a jewellery piece weighs one gram or significantly more.
The Council said this creates a much higher percentage cost burden on lightweight and lower-value jewellery, particularly affecting middle-income and mass-market consumers at a time when gold prices are already elevated.
Rajesh Rokde: Review the Increase Before Burdening Compliant Jewellers
Mr. Rajesh Rokde, Chairman, GJC, said:
“GJC and the jewellery industry have consistently supported hallmarking because purity assurance and consumer confidence are fundamental to our trade. But support for hallmarking does not mean that a nearly 67% increase in the cost of mandatory compliance should pass without examination. Hallmarking volumes have expanded enormously. The industry therefore deserves to understand why the per-article charge needs to rise from ₹45 to ₹75 at this stage.”
He added:
“BIS’s own enforcement actions across Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Assam and other locations demonstrate that fake hallmarking, unauthorised operations and non-compliance remain serious concerns. Before increasing the burden on compliant jewellers, the priority should be to address these distortions and strengthen enforcement. Increasing the official fee does not by itself make the hallmarking ecosystem stronger.”
Avinash Gupta: Compliance Must Remain Commercially Sustainable
Mr. Avinash Gupta, Vice Chairman, GJC, said:
“Compliance must remain commercially sustainable. If the compliant route becomes progressively more expensive while informal and unauthorised channels continue to operate, the differential between the two widens. That is not desirable either for the Government, the industry or the consumer.”
He further stated:
“There are also industry concerns regarding aggressive discounting and commercial inducements in the race for hallmarking volumes. If ₹45 itself is not being uniformly realised across the market, the first question should be why that is happening and whether the present economic model requires correction. Simply prescribing ₹75 without studying actual market practices may not address the underlying problem.”
GJC’s Seven Recommendations
The Council has urged the Government and BIS to consider the following measures:
- Keep the increase from ₹45 to ₹75 per article in abeyance until a comprehensive review is completed.
- Conduct a transparent cost study of recognised Assaying and Hallmarking Centres.
- Examine actual market pricing, including discounts, rebates and commercial inducements.
- Intensify enforcement against fake hallmarking, unauthorised centres and misuse of the BIS logo.
- Consult GJC, jewellers, manufacturers and hallmarking centres before revising compliance costs.
- Assess whether higher hallmarking volumes can enable economies of scale to stabilise or reduce charges.
- Explore a differentiated mechanism for lightweight and lower-value jewellery, where a uniform per-piece fee creates a disproportionate burden.
Hallmarking Should Remain Affordable
GJC concluded that the domestic jewellery industry continues to support genuine hallmarking and strict action against those who misuse the system.
The Council’s position remains that a successful regulatory framework depends on affordable compliance, credible enforcement and a marketplace where malpractice becomes commercially unattractive.
According to GJC, increasing hallmarking charges by nearly 67% without first resolving existing distortions within the ecosystem warrants immediate reconsideration.
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