Gold Hallmarking: Government to provide 75% assistance for setting up a gold hallmarking center! What will be the cost?

To ensure the purity of jewellery, the government has made gold hallmarking mandatory across the country. The government has now also announced support for those looking to establish hallmarking centres. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has invited an 'Expression of Interest' (EOI) for the establishment of Gold Assaying and Hallmarking Centres (AHC) for the period from 2026 to 2031. The BIS has stated that assistance will be provided for setting up centres in districts that currently do not have any existing hallmarking facilities.

According to the BIS, for private centres established in general areas, 30% of the machinery cost will be covered, while 50% assistance will be provided to Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). Furthermore, for centres located in the North-East, special category states, and rural areas, the assistance will be 50% for private entities and 75% for PSUs. A key condition to avail of this support is that the applicant or promoter of the centre must not have any involvement in the jewellery trade or manufacturing sector. To receive this assistance, the centre must be accredited by the BIS; applicants are also required to pay a processing fee of ₹1,000 plus GST. The deadline for the EOI is November 18, 2026, with the BIS having issued the notification on October 19.

Fees for operating a hallmarking centre:

An application fee of ₹5,000 is required to set up a hallmarking centre.
Additionally, an assessment fee of ₹5,000 per man-day is applicable.
For cities with a population exceeding 1 million (10 lakh), the accreditation fee is ₹60,000 for a 3-year period.
For all other smaller cities, the accreditation fee is set at ₹40,000 for a 3-year period.

Cost of setting up a hallmarking centre:

The XRF gold testing machine is the most expensive component required to set up a hallmarking centre, with costs ranging from ₹1.5 million to ₹3 million (₹15 lakh to ₹30 lakh). Additionally, a laser marking machine costs between ₹5 lakh and ₹8 lakh, an electronic weighing balance costs ₹2 lakh to ₹3 lakh, and lab interiors, ventilation, and power backup systems require an investment of ₹5 lakh to ₹7 lakh. Furthermore, ₹2 lakh to ₹3 lakh is spent on security, computers, and software. Setting up a center also entails an annual rent of ₹4 lakh to ₹8 lakh and fees amounting to ₹1 lakh to ₹2 lakh. In total, the cost to establish such a center ranges from approximately ₹40 lakh to ₹70 lakh.

Earnings from a BIS Center
On September 14, 2026, the BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) amended the regulations concerning hallmarking centers. Under these rules, jewelers are required to pay ₹75 to have a piece of gold jewelry hallmarked, whereas the BIS charges these centers only ₹7.50 per item. For instance, if a center receives 100 pieces of jewelry per day, the total daily earnings would be approximately ₹7,500, resulting in a monthly income of ₹1.95 lakh.

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