India doubles gold, silver customs duty to 15% to rein in bullion import bill
Government of India raised gold and silver customs duty from 6% to 15% and platinum to 15.4%, targeting a FY26 bullion bill that ballooned to $84bn despite volume drops. Analysts at Barclays and GTRI warn CEPA arbitrage with UAE (7% silver tariff, 200-tonne TRQ by 2027) and record global prices could blunt impact and fuel smuggling.
What happened
Government of India · India more than doubled gold and silver customs duty to 15% to curb non-essential imports, but elevated global prices and CEPA arbitrage
Key facts
- gold duty 6% to 15%
- silver duty 6% to 15%
- platinum duty 6.4% to 15.4%
- FY26 gold imports 721.03 tonnes (-4.76%)
- gold import value $71.98bn (+24%)
- silver imports 7334.96 tonnes (+42.03%)
- silver import value $12.05bn (+150%)
- CEPA silver tariff 7% vs 15%
- UAE TRQ 200 tonnes by 2027
- FY27 gold bill +$15bn
Why this matters
The duty arbitrage sharpens strategic value of UAE-linked refining JVs and CEPA-eligible silver TRQ access, opening M&A angles around DMCC trading arms and bonded warehousing capacity.