Editor’s Note
This article outlines a key update for Indian expatriates and NRIs regarding relaxed customs rules for carrying gold jewellery, as announced in India’s Union Budget. The change specifies new duty-free limits for returning residents.
Dubai: In a significant development for Indian expatriates in the UAE and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) worldwide, India has relaxed customs regulations for carrying gold jewellery. This follows the announcement of the Customs Baggage Rules, 2026, in India’s Union Budget 2026 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday, February 1.
The revised rules now specify duty-free jewellery limits for returning residents or tourists of Indian origin as follows: female passengers are allowed duty-free clearance of jewellery up to 40 grams, while the limit is 20 grams for male passengers, provided it is carried in bona fide baggage.
Previously, the rules allowed the same weight limits but imposed value caps of Rs100,000 for females and Rs50,000 for males. For gold exceeding these limits, customs duty was applicable, and passengers were required to carry purchase invoices and declare excess gold at the Red Channel to avoid penalties. The value cap has now been removed, with only the weight limit remaining.
Announcing the change in her Budget speech, Sitharaman stated the existing framework needed an overhaul.
Notifications issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes (CBIT) under the Department of Revenue have been circulated to customs offices nationwide. Cochin Customs in Kerala’s Kochi confirmed receiving the notifications and stated the new rules are effective from Monday, February 2.
This means the duty-free allowance for passengers (residents or tourists of Indian origin arriving in India by modes other than land) bringing imported goods into India is now Rs 75,000, provided the items are carried on the person or form part of bona fide accompanied baggage.
The change applies to an Indian resident or a tourist of Indian origin who has been residing abroad for over one year arriving through any mode other than land. Jewellery, under these new rules, refers to articles of adornment ordinarily worn by a person and made of gold, silver, platinum or other precious metals, whether studded or not.
As reported earlier, Indian expats in the UAE had urged the Indian government to update the outdated customs duty regulations on gold jewellery, citing confusion and harassment of travellers at Indian airports. A fresh appeal came from the Indian Association Sharjah in September 2025 following persistent difficulties faced by NRIs.
The association’s petition highlighted an ambiguity in Customs Baggage Declaration Regulations regarding the permissible allowance of gold ornaments for NRIs living abroad for over a year. It pointed out that when the rule was last updated in 2016, gold cost around Rs2,500 per gram, and the skyrocketing market rates had made the existing caps unrealistic and prone to disputes.