Q8. Importing Gold To India | Customs duty on gold

Question: I want to find out how much gold(gold bars) can we carry to India without having to pay anything at the customs?

Answer: There is no such thing as zero duty on gold bars taken to India by a passenger. The only duty free allowance that is allowed is on gold ornaments and is limited to Rupees 50,000 for men and Rupees 100,000 for women. Comprehensive information on applicable customs duties on gold and who can legally take gold to India is provided below:

Customs duty on import of gold to India by passengers is currently 10%.

Indian origin passengers or those holding valid Indian passports are eligible to import gold provided they are coming to India after a stay abroad of at least six months. Applicable customs duties on gold imports in such cases must be paid in foreign currency by incoming passengers. [Circular No 06/2014-Customs]

• Persons of Indian origin (NRI, OCI, PIO) returning to India after a stay abroad of at least six months can take up to 1 kilogram of gold to India. • This 1 kg of gold is NOT allowed in duty free. Customs Duty has to be paid. • Kindly note that the weight of gold (including ornaments) should not exceed 1 kg. per passenger. • The current rate of duty on gold that is within the allowed 1 kg limit is calculated @ 10 % [Notification No.12/2012-Cus] • The price of gold is calculated based on the value notified by the government of India.

This value is subject to change from time to time as market conditions change the value of gold. • The rate of customs duty on gold in excess of the allowed 1 kg limit is currently set at 36.05%. So if you take more than 1 kg of gold. Then: o One Kg of gold the duty would be charged @ 10% [Notification No.12/2012- Cus] o Any gold jewelry taken to India that is over the duty free allowance will be charged customs duty at the applicable Indian customs duty rate, this currently works out to be @ 36.05%. • Customs duty has to be paid in convertible foreign currency. • In case the passenger bringing in the gold has not stayed abroad for 6 months, then duty @ 36.05% may be charged on all the gold the passenger arrives with.

Note: Custom duties can be changed by the authorities at any time. Check with the concerned authorities for latest information. Indian passengers who stay abroad for over a year are allowed to bring free of duty gold in the form of jewelry as part of their baggage up to an aggregate value of: • Rs 50,000 for male passengers - Please note the new weight restriction added since April 1, 2016.

See column on right titled ‘Current information on taking gold to India’ • Rs 1 lakh for lady passengers

• Duty free allowance in India currently for all international passengers arriving in India regardless of the period of stay abroad is now Rupees Rs. 50,000. • One laptop is also allowed in addition to the Rs. 50,000 allowance. • Flat panel (LCD/LED/Plasma) television cannot be included in the allowed duty free allowance of Rs.50,000. Duty free import of such TVs is no longer allowed since August 26, 2013. Passengers can take gold to India provided they declare and pay the applicable customs duty in India.

Up to 10 Kilograms of gold per passenger can be imported to India provided the period of stay abroad has been at least six months. (Note: the 10 kilogram amount has now been reduced to 1 kilogram, see update below) There are also provisions where passengers can pay for the gold abroad and collect the gold from bonded warehouses of the State Bank of India. This eliminates the need to personally carry gold while traveling. State Bank of India has branches in many cities overseas.

The customs duty on gold imported to India is Rupees 250 per 10 grams of gold. (Previously I think duty was Rupees 400 for 10 grams and was reduced to Rupees 250 in the year 2001) - Has been changed, see the updated information on this page: The price of gold in India is competitive to world gold prices so do your homework before deciding to import gold to India. On April 20, 2007 I purchased some jewelry items in New Delhi from a store in Connaught Place. The rate they charged me for gold was calculated at Rupees 8700 for 10 grams of 22 carat gold.

Update April 24, 2012

Import of Gold to India by passenger as part of baggage

Previously, the customs duty structure on gold imported as baggage by persons of Indian origin was:

1. Gold bars, other than tola bars, bearing manufacturers or refiners engraved serial number and weight expressed in metric units and gold coins - Rs. 300 per 10 grams + 3% Educational Cess.

2. Gold in any form other than what is listed in number 1 above including tola bars and ornaments, but excluding ornaments studded with stones or pearls - Rs. 750 per 10 grams + 3% Educational Cess*(see update on right side).

Earlier this year, the Government of India changed the customs duty structure on gold imported to India from the specific to value linked.

The customs duty on gold was fixed at 2% of value. (For example, instead of the Rs. 300 per 10 grams fixed rate earlier, customs duty was to be calculated as a percentage of value) Update: Customs duty on gold taken to India increases in 2013: • Jan 2013, up from 4 percent to 6 percent • June 2013, up from 6 percent to 8 percent • August 2013, up from 8 percent to 10 percent of the gold value. • A 3% cess charge on top of the 10% gold customs duty should also be taken into account* *To see how gold duty is calculated and how cess is added to customs duty CLICK HERE

10 Kg gold allowance reduced to 1 Kg

Passengers could legally take up-to 10 Kg of gold to India till April 17, 2012. However this amount has been reduced to 1 Kg from April 18, 2012. The maximum amount of gold a passenger can now take to India is limited to one kilogram of gold.

Click HERE to view government press release in this regard. Carrying over 1 kilograms of gold to India is prohibited and will result in the gold being seized and the passenger prosecuted. According to a report published in two major Indian newspapers excerpts from their news report articles are provided below: Times of India dated April 21, 2012: A passenger is allowed to bring up to 1 kilogram of gold by paying duty.

However, quantities greater than 1 kilogram are seized and the person carrying it is prosecuted under Customs Act 1962. May 11, 2012: Surprisingly, the official customs website still shows the limit as 10 Kg. per passenger! Some websites also still continue to show 10 Kg as the limit.

The current duty free allowance on gold taken as jewelry is still Rs. 10000 for a male passenger or Rs. 20000 for a lady passenger. These amounts were set several years ago, with the price of gold in India now at almost Rupees 29,000 for 10 grams, there is hardly any real gold jewelery these days that can be bought for Rupees 10,000. No wonder gold jewelery is going out of style! its now purchased more and more for investment purposes.

Gold these days, is too expensive to buy and with chain snatching in India on the rise, wearing gold is becoming unsafe also. Note: Gold duty free limits for India have been increased effective April 1, 2013. See update in right column.

Note: The recent Union Budget proposed to doubled the customs duty on standard gold from 2% to 4% and on non-standard gold from 5% to 10% from the financial year 2012-13. Now as of August 2013, the rate has been increased to 10% plus 3% cess charge. Current price of gold in India for 22 & 24 Karat gold - [Delhi India] The price of gold in India as on January 20, 2017, was reported to be Rupees 28,500 for 10 grams of 22 Karat gold and Rupees 30482 for 24 Karat gold.

Prices differ by a few hundred Rupees depending on city. The cheapest place to by gold in India seems to be Kerala, currently the price in Kerala for comparison purposes is 27500 for 22 Carat and 294112 for 24 Carat. Suggested Reading: Question/Answer number 425 titled ‘Problems with customs at airport when taking gold from Australia>

Are NRI passengers searched on arrival at Indian airports on arrival for gold >>

More Info on taking Gold or Jewelry taken to India

*Customs duty on gold Taking Gold to India?

How much duty would I have to pay The previous customs duty on gold taken to India by passengers have been revised. Changes are shown below. Please be advised to check with authorities to confirm the latest customs duties as rates can be changed at anytime by the government of India Those taking gold to India or gold jewelery in excess of the allowable amount, can expect to pay duty @ 10% of the value of the gold.

How much gold can a passenger take to India? Some websites still continue to show that passengers can take 10 Kg of gold to India. This is no longer true and was revised to 1 kilogram of gold for quite some time now.

Do your homework before heading to India with 10 Kgs of gold! Taking Jewelry out of India Indian citizens traveling abroad to attend wedding functions etc. where they wish to use their personal jewelry. Having an export certificate will help avoid problems with customs when you return to India with the Jewelry.

When arriving in India with gold or dutiable goods in excess of your duty free limit, don’t use the green channel to walk out. Passengers can be arrested if caught walking out without proper declaration.