GST on gold jewellery: 3%, making charges, and how to check the bill
The short answer
Gold, silver and jewellery carry 3% GST, split into 1.5% CGST and 1.5% SGST within a state. The rate did not change in the September 2025 reform. When a jeweller sells you finished jewellery, the 3% applies to the whole value, making charges included. The 5% rate applies to job work, when an artisan makes jewellery from gold a jeweller supplies.
Gold is taxed at a rate of its own. Nearly everything else sits in the main slabs of 5%, 18% or 40%. Gold, silver and jewellery sit at 3%, and the reform of 22 September 2025 left that rate where it was.
The rate, and how it appears on a bill
A jeweller in your own state shows the 3% as two equal lines:
- CGST: 1.5%
- SGST: 1.5%
Buy from a jeweller in another state, say online with delivery to you, and it is a single line of 3% IGST. The total tax is the same either way. Our guide to CGST, SGST and IGST explains why.
The same 3% applies to gold coins and bars bought from a dealer. For gold, it is the metal that sets the rate, whether it arrives as a necklace, a coin or a bar, so there is no cheaper form to buy on tax grounds.
Rough diamonds sit at a rate of their own too, 0.25%, which matters to dealers more than to shoppers.
Making charges
A jewellery bill usually has two parts: the value of the metal, worked out from its weight and the day’s rate, and the making charge for turning that metal into a piece.
When a jeweller sells you a finished piece, you are buying one thing, the jewellery. The making charge is part of its price, so the 3% applies to the metal value and the making charge together. Seeing them itemised is useful, because it shows you what you are paying for the work. It does not change the rate.
Worked through, on a piece where the gold is worth ₹80,000 and the making charge is ₹12,000:
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Gold value | ₹80,000 |
| Making charges | ₹12,000 |
| Taxable value | ₹92,000 |
| CGST at 1.5% | ₹1,380 |
| SGST at 1.5% | ₹1,380 |
| Total | ₹94,760 |
Where 5% comes in
You will see “5% GST on making charges” quoted, and it is a real rate, but for a different transaction. When a jeweller hands gold to an artisan or workshop and pays them to make it into jewellery, that is job work. The job worker’s charge for the work is taxed at 5%, and the jeweller pays it.
That is a charge between two businesses. When you buy a finished piece over the counter, the job worker’s 5% is already behind the scenes, and your bill is at 3%.
Checking a jeweller’s bill
- Add the taxable parts. Metal value plus making charges, plus any other charge for the piece.
- Take 3% of that total. ₹92,000 gives ₹2,760.
- Check the split. Within a state, CGST and SGST should each be half: ₹1,380 and ₹1,380.
- Check the GSTIN. A proper tax invoice carries the jeweller’s GST number and describes the goods, usually with HSN heading 7113 for articles of jewellery.
If the jeweller quotes a price that already includes GST, divide by 1.03 to find the value before tax. ₹1,03,000 including 3% is ₹1,00,000 before tax and ₹3,000 of GST. Our guide to calculating GST covers that reverse sum.
On the counter, in one tap
GST Calculator carries 3% and 0.25% alongside the main slabs, and its four rate keys can be set once so a jeweller’s keypad opens on the rates they use all day. Type the value, tap 3%, and read CGST, SGST and the total. It works offline, and it is an independent app, not a government service. To try it first, open the GST calculator in your browser and pick 3%.
For anything unusual, such as exchanging old gold against new jewellery, ask your jeweller to show the tax working on the bill, and check it with a tax professional if it looks wrong.
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