An organization based in the UAE has formally requested the Indian government to clarify gold carrying regulations for expats. The Indian Association of Sharjah sent a memorandum to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday, urging the removal of ambiguities in the customs baggage declaration rules to align with current gold prices.
“This is a significant challenge for Indian expats traveling to their home country through airports,” stated Nizar Thalangara, the organization’s president.
“The regulations on how much gold an expat can bring home were established nearly a decade ago and are outdated. With gold prices reaching record highs, many expat travelers end up paying substantial duties for small amounts of gold due to the outdated valuations.”
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Under current regulations, women can carry up to 40g of gold jewelry valued at Rs100,000 (approx. Dh4,200), while men can bring up to 20g of gold, with a value cap of Rs50,000 (Dh2,100) when traveling to India from abroad.
The memorandum noted that when the gold-carrying rules were introduced in 2016, the price of 22K gold was about Rs2,500 (Dh104). Now, gold prices have more than tripled to over Dh400, making 40g of gold worth more than Dh16,000 and 20g of 22K gold valued at over Dh8,000.
“This discrepancy causes confusion for travelers and challenges for authorities in enforcement,” it stated.
“The gap between the stipulated value and current market conditions often leads to unnecessary disputes at customs, inconvenience for genuine travelers, and unfortunately, enables corrupt practices.”
“These situations not only distress expat Indians but also impose an unnecessary burden on customs officials,” Nizar added. “Thus, the memorandum requests the removal of the value cap in the notification, allowing passengers to carry a specified weight of gold ornaments.”
