(MENAFN- Live Mint) The government announced on Monday that it is imposing import curbs on certain types of platinum jewellery, further noting that these restrictions will remain in force until April next year, as reported by the news agency PTI.

The import policy of platinum jewellery“is revised from Free to Restricted, with immediate effect till 30 April 2026,” the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in the latest notification.

The decision follows concerns raised by the India Bullion and Jewellers Association (IBJA), which brought the issue to the authorities' notice, noting that bullion dealers had been importing platinum-alloy jewellery duty-free, despite the products containing nearly 90% gold, along with small quantities of silver and platinum. The association urged authorities to close this loophole, as per a Reuters report.

Restrictions on certain silver jewellery imports

This announcement comes just three months after the centre imposed similar restrictions on certain silver jewellery, with an objective of protecting domestic manufacturers and safeguarding jobs in the sector at a time of high seasonal demand.

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The import curbs on silver will be effective till 31 March next year. India primarily imports silver jewellery from China, the UAE and Thailand.

Why are these curbs imposed?

The decision comes after the Commerce Ministry noticed a surge in unstudded silver jewellery imports from some countries, including Thailand, over the past three months (April-June 2025), a Mint report said earlier.

A senior government official noted at the time that a significant amount of imported jewellery was entering India under the guise of finished products, thereby lowering domestic prices and threatening employment in the labour-intensive silver jewellery sector.

India has a free trade agreement with ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nations), and Thailand is a member of this 10-nation group.

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Similarly, a few bullion dealers and jewellers were found to be exploiting a loophole in an import rule to avoid duty on platinum, making a 4-4.5% profit of tens of crores, according to a Mint report.

Daily imports of platinum jewellery by volume had surged to as high as annual inbound shipments. These consignments were landing at Amritsar and Delhi airports, after which the jewellery pieces were melted and converted into platinum bars, which were then sold in the domestic market, evading the 6.4% duty on such bars, the news report stated.

What does this mean for platinum jewellery importers?

Now that certain platinum jewellery has been placed from the free to a restricted category, this means that importers will require a valid license from the DGFT to bring in such consignments from other countries.

The same rule applies to silver jewellery importers, who have to produce a valid authorisation from the DGFT to import these goods.

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