India Restricts Gold and Silver Imports Under FTP 2023, Requires DGFT License

(INDIA) — India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade imposed import restrictions on all articles of gold, silver, and platinum jewellery under Chapter 71 of the ITC (HS) 2022, tightening the import policy with immediate effect under Notification No. 02/2026-27 dated April 1, 2026.

The move changed the import status for goods under Customs Tariff Heading (CTH) 7113 from “Free” to “Restricted,” requiring importers to obtain a DGFT license or permission before bringing those products into the country.

The new condition applies at once. It covers imports regardless of existing contracts, irrevocable letters of credit, advance payments, shipment status, or other obligations, and it offers no transitional arrangements or relief under FTP 2023.

The restriction reaches across a broad band of jewellery imports under Chapter 71. It includes gold jewellery, whether plain or studded, silver jewellery, platinum jewellery, and jewellery studded with pearls, diamonds, or other precious and semi-precious stones.

Parts of such jewellery also fall under the new rule. That includes items such as filigree work.

The policy shift adds a licensing hurdle for importers that, until now, could bring in these products under a “Free” import classification. Under the revised framework, those shipments now require prior government approval.

DGFT framed the measure as part of a wider tightening of controls on Chapter 71 items under FTP 2023. The update builds on existing restrictions already in place for unwrought and semi-manufactured forms.

The new order also reflects concerns inside the trade policy system over how some importers were using free trade agreements. Authorities said the measure aimed to prevent importers from exploiting FTAs such as the India-ASEAN FTA to bypass duties by importing unstudded jewellery from countries like Thailand.

That rationale places the latest order within a broader effort to police tariff advantages that arise under trade pacts. By shifting finished jewellery under CTH 7113 into the “Restricted” category, the government has moved from tariff-based management to a licensing gatekeeper system.

The decision follows earlier controls on specific jewellery categories. Prior restrictions covered platinum jewellery from November 2025 to April 2026 and silver jewellery from September 2025 to March 2026.

Those earlier steps targeted narrower segments. The latest notification extends the reach to all articles of gold, silver, and platinum jewellery under the chapter named in the order.

For businesses that rely on imported finished jewellery or components, the immediate effect matters as much as the classification change itself. The notification makes clear that prior commercial commitments do not shield consignments from the new restriction.

That means an importer with a contract already signed, an irrevocable letter of credit already opened, money already paid in advance, or goods already in transit still must comply with the revised policy condition. FTP 2023 does not provide a transition window in this case.

The breadth of the language marks out an unusually hard stop. Instead of allowing cargo booked under the previous regime to clear under older terms, the notification applies the restriction across the board from the effective date.

Even so, the government carved out several exemptions. Those include 100% Export Oriented Units, or EOUs, and units located in Special Economic Zones, or SEZs, provided the goods are not for domestic sale.

Imports under Gems and Jewellery export schemes in the FTP also remain outside the restriction. So do imports under the India-UAE CEPA within the prescribed tariff rate quota, or TRQ.

Those carve-outs show that the government did not shut every route for precious metal and jewellery imports. It instead narrowed access for general imports of finished jewellery while keeping channels open for export-linked production and specific treaty-based quotas.

A separate part of the policy position also leaves room for certain bullion imports. Unwrought gold and silver remain restricted, but they are still allowable through RBI or DGFT-nominated agencies, qualified jewellers via India International Bullion Exchange, or India-UAE TRQ holders via IFSCA-registered vaults in SEZs.

That distinction matters because the order focuses on jewellery articles under CTH 7113, while the background to the change points to a longer tightening cycle across Chapter 71. Existing restrictions on unwrought and semi-manufactured forms had already formed part of that framework.

The result is a trade regime that now draws a sharper line between finished jewellery imports and imports tied to designated schemes, export production, or named institutional channels. For general importers, the most immediate consequence is the need to secure a license before any shipment can proceed.

India’s use of licensing in this area also signals a policy preference for transaction-level scrutiny. Rather than leaving all covered goods under a blanket “Free” category, the government can now examine import flows through permissions before entry.

That approach aligns with the stated concern over duty avoidance through trade agreements. The reference to importers using FTAs to route unstudded jewellery from Thailand indicates the authorities wanted to close what they saw as a route around normal duty incidence.

The mention of the India-ASEAN FTA is central to that explanation. In trade policy terms, the notification links market access treatment under an FTA to a domestic response aimed at tighter control over specific product lines.

The order sits within FTP 2023, which governs India’s broader foreign trade rules. By using that policy framework, DGFT has added a fresh condition to imports in a sector already subject to detailed regulation because of its value, duty structure, and trade agreement exposure.

For importers, the operational shift is direct. If a shipment falls under the affected jewellery categories in Chapter 71 and under CTH 7113, it can no longer enter under the earlier “Free” import status and now requires a DGFT license or permission.

That covers plain and studded gold jewellery, silver jewellery, platinum jewellery, jewellery set with pearls, diamonds, or other precious and semi-precious stones, and parts of those goods. The scope reaches both finished adornment products and certain components used in jewellery manufacture.

For export-linked units, the exemptions preserve continuity. EOUs, SEZ units that are not supplying the domestic market, and imports under Gems and Jewellery export schemes retain access under the conditions laid out for those channels.

For traders using the India-UAE CEPA route, the tariff rate quota remains intact within the prescribed limit. That means the new restriction is not an across-the-board closure of all preferential or scheme-based imports, but a narrower clampdown targeted at the wider “Free” route.

The structure of the notification suggests DGFT wanted to move quickly. Its immediate effect, combined with the absence of any relief for prior commitments, leaves little space for importers to adjust shipments booked before April 1, 2026.

That feature may prove as important as the list of affected goods. In practical terms, the notification resets the compliance position from the day it took effect, regardless of how far a transaction had already advanced.

India’s precious metals and jewellery trade has long been shaped by a mix of import curbs, tariff management and scheme-based exceptions. This latest step extends that pattern by placing finished jewellery imports under tighter control while preserving narrow channels tied to exports, quotas and designated agencies.

With Notification No. 02/2026-27 now in force, importers of covered jewellery articles face a new threshold: no license, no import.