The Centre is considering bringing silver jewellery and artefacts under a mandatory hallmarking framework as part of efforts to strengthen consumer protection in the precious metals market, a senior Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) official said on Tuesday.
At present, hallmarking of silver remains voluntary, unlike gold, where certification is compulsory. According to BIS Director General Sanjay Garg, the industry itself has been pushing for mandatory hallmarking of silver. However, BIS is currently evaluating the regulatory framework and infrastructure readiness required for such a move, including adequate assaying standards and testing capacity.
Under the existing voluntary system, hallmarked silver articles carry a Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) number, which enables buyers to verify purity and trace the product through the BIS database. Adoption has been steadily increasing, with over 20 lakh silver articles already hallmarked with HUID. Garg noted that voluntary hallmarking volumes rose from 31 lakh articles in 2024 to 51 lakh in 2025.
The review comes against the backdrop of sharply rising silver prices and growing retail as well as investment demand, which has intensified concerns around purity and standardisation. Officials said the government is closely studying its experience with mandatory gold hallmarking to understand implementation challenges before extending similar requirements to silver.
While hallmarking of silver is still optional, any jeweller choosing to certify silver products must now use the HUID system. This requirement has been in force since September 2025, even though mandatory hallmarking has not yet been notified.
India is among the world’s largest consumers of silver, with annual demand estimated at 5,000–7,000 tonnes. Domestic production meets only a small fraction of this requirement, with jewellery and silverware accounting for a significant share of consumption alongside industrial use.
Officials clarified that no timeline has been set for making silver hallmarking compulsory, and extensive consultations with industry stakeholders, along with infrastructure upgrades, will be necessary before any final decision is taken.
