GST on gold in India is simpler than many current online explanations make it sound, but one distinction matters: an ordinary retail jewellery sale is not automatically the same thing as jewellery job work.
Current CBIC rate tables reviewed by TPS place gold under HSN 7108, precious-metal jewellery under HSN 7113 and coin under HSN 7118 in the 3% GST schedule. For a normal sale of jewellery to the end consumer, CBIC’s Gems & Jewellery FAQ specifically says 3% applies to the total transaction value, even when making charges are shown separately.
The separate 5% jewellery rate that often appears in online explainers relates to qualifying job-work services. It should not automatically be applied to the making-charge line on every finished-jewellery retail invoice.
Gold classified under HSN 7108 is listed at 3% GST in the current CBIC schedule reviewed by TPS.
Precious-metal jewellery under HSN 7113 is listed at 3% GST.
Coin under HSN 7118 is also listed in the 3% GST schedule.
GST on gold in India: the current rate table
| What you are buying | Relevant classification reviewed | Current GST rate | Important boundary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold / bullion / bars | HSN 7108 | 3% | The actual product must fall within the applicable classification. |
| Precious-metal jewellery | HSN 7113 | 3% | For an ordinary retail jewellery sale, CBIC says the total transaction value is taxed at 3%. |
| Coin | HSN 7118 | 3% | The exact classification of the supplied product still controls. |
| Qualifying jewellery job work | Service under the applicable job-work entry | 5% | This is a different supply from an ordinary retailer selling finished jewellery to a consumer. |
Is GST 3% on gold plus 5% on making charges?
Not as a blanket rule for an ordinary finished-jewellery retail sale.
CBIC’s jewellery-sector FAQ gives a direct consumer example in which gold value and making charges are shown separately. CBIC says GST is charged at 3% on the total transaction value of the jewellery, whether the making charge is shown separately or not.
This is important because several current consumer-finance and tax pages describe jewellery purchases using a simplified formula of 3% on gold plus 5% on making charges. That formulation can confuse two different types of supply.
Where does the 5% jewellery rate come from?
CBIC separately discusses jewellery job work. Its example involves a manufacturer supplying gold to a registered job worker and receiving finished jewellery back. The job worker’s service is taxed under the applicable job-work service entry, which is currently listed at 5%.
That is not automatically the same as a jeweller selling finished jewellery to an end consumer and displaying a making-charge line on the bill.
The key question is therefore not simply whether the words making charges appear on an invoice. The nature of the underlying supply matters.
Does showing making charges separately change the retail GST rate?
For the ordinary retail jewellery example addressed by CBIC, no. CBIC says 3% applies to the total transaction value even when the making charge is displayed separately.
A separate invoice line therefore does not, by itself, prove that the consumer is receiving a separate 5% job-work service.
Example: ordinary retail jewellery purchase
Suppose a jeweller sells finished jewellery and the invoice separately lists the value of the gold and the making charge. Under the CBIC retail-jewellery FAQ reviewed by TPS, the relevant rule is 3% on the total transaction value of the jewellery.
TPS is deliberately not using a fabricated rupee example here because actual invoices can also contain stones, other materials, discounts or other components whose treatment depends on the real supply and classification.
GST on gold bars
Gold under HSN 7108 is listed in CBIC’s current 3% GST schedule. For a straightforward domestic purchase of a gold bar falling under that classification, the purchase GST is therefore 3% of the taxable value.
This article does not calculate customs duty or import taxes. Those are separate from domestic purchase GST and should not be mixed into the same percentage.
GST on gold coins
Coin under HSN 7118 is also listed at 3% in the current CBIC goods-rate table reviewed by TPS.
As with bars, the actual product classification matters. A seller’s marketing description alone does not replace the relevant GST classification.
Does 18K, 22K or 24K change the GST percentage?
TPS did not find separate 18K, 22K and 24K GST percentages in the reviewed current Chapter 71 rate schedule. The relevant classification and taxable value control the rate entry rather than karat alone.
Purity still matters commercially because it affects the underlying gold value, but that is different from saying each purity automatically has a different GST percentage.
CGST, SGST and IGST on a gold invoice
For an intra-state supply under the 3% schedule, the tax is generally represented as 1.5% CGST plus 1.5% SGST. An inter-state supply uses the integrated-tax framework instead.
Consumers should therefore look at the total GST burden as well as how the invoice splits the tax components.
GST at purchase is not the same as capital-gains tax
Purchase GST and capital-gains taxation occur at different stages.
GST forms part of the acquisition-side tax treatment when you buy physical gold. Tax on gains when you later sell or redeem an investment is a separate income-tax question.
TPS covers that later-stage issue separately in Gold Tax in India: Physical Gold, ETFs, Mutual Funds and SGBs Compared.
What if you give your own gold to a jeweller for fabrication?
This is where readers should avoid extending the normal retail example too far.
If a customer already owns the gold and separately pays someone to process or fabricate it, the transaction can look more like a service or job-work arrangement than a standard retailer selling finished jewellery from its own stock.
The reviewed CBIC job-work material becomes relevant to that distinction, but TPS did not establish one universal consumer-specific rule covering every custom-fabrication contract. The actual supply structure should therefore be verified before applying a rate.
What about exchanging old gold for new jewellery?
Old-gold exchange transactions can introduce separate valuation questions. TPS did not establish one universal primary-source calculation rule in this R&D that is safe to apply to every exchange arrangement.
For that reason, this article does not publish a generic old-gold exchange GST calculator. Readers should rely on the actual invoice and controlling current tax guidance for that transaction.
Why current websites disagree on making-charge GST
The conflict appears to come from treating the 5% jewellery job-work rate as though it automatically applies whenever making charges are separately listed on a consumer invoice.
CBIC’s own retail-jewellery FAQ draws a more specific boundary: 3% on the total transaction value in its end-consumer jewellery example, versus a separate 5% treatment in its manufacturer-to-job-worker example.
For TPS, the official transaction distinction controls over simplified secondary formulas.
Five checks before accepting a gold GST calculation
Is the supply jewellery, gold bullion, a bar, a coin or something else?
Confirm the relevant HSN or service classification rather than relying only on a marketing label.
A finished-jewellery sale to a consumer is not automatically the same as processing gold owned by another party.
Look at taxable value, CGST/SGST or IGST lines, making charges and any other components together.
GST at acquisition and capital-gains taxation at disposal answer different questions.
Direct answer
Under the current CBIC framework reviewed in September 2026, gold under HSN 7108, precious-metal jewellery under HSN 7113 and coin under HSN 7118 are in the 3% GST schedule.
For a normal sale of jewellery to an end consumer, CBIC specifically says 3% applies to the total transaction value even when making charges are shown separately. The separate 5% rate is relevant to qualifying jewellery job-work services and should not automatically be treated as the standard retail making-charge GST.
Verification note
TPS reviewed the current CBIC GST goods-rate schedule, the CBIC Gems & Jewellery sectoral FAQ and the current service-rate treatment of Chapter 71 job work. TPS also compared current 2026 consumer-tax explanations to identify where secondary guidance conflicts with CBIC’s retail example.
Limitations and unresolved facts
GST classification can depend on the actual supply. TPS did not establish one universal treatment for every customer-owned-gold fabrication contract, old-gold exchange arrangement or mixed-material jewellery invoice. Future CBIC or GST Council notifications may also change the rates or interpretation, so current official guidance should control consequential transactions.
