Checking a gold hallmark in India: read the marks and verify the HUID

For a gold purchase in India, compare the marks on the actual piece with the seller's description and the record you open yourself. Keep any mismatch unresolved until the seller or BIS explains it. This is a purchase check; a home inspection cannot replace a professional metal-purity test.

Read the complete gold mark

BIS describes the HUID-era gold hallmark as three marks: the BIS logo, purity stated in karatage and fineness, and a six-character alphanumeric Hallmarking Unique Identification number. A purity number on its own leaves the complete marking question unanswered. BIS gold-mark explanation.

Request a clear view of the marks on the piece you would receive. If you cannot read them, ask the seller to show them more clearly. Copy the letters and numbers carefully rather than correcting an uncertain character from memory.

Gold and silver have separate standards and grades. For a silver purchase, use the 925 stamp and BIS silver-hallmark guide. Do not transfer its silver-grade list to gold.

Open the verification record yourself

The official BIS Care app has a Verify HUID feature for checking hallmarked gold jewellery before purchase. BIS also provides a route for consumers to have jewellery tested at a recognized Assaying and Hallmarking Centre. BIS consumer verification and testing guidance.

Enter the HUID from the item and compare the returned details with the offer. Keep the date of your check. If the code does not resolve or a detail differs, pause the purchase and ask the seller or BIS to investigate. Keep the seller's explanation with your own lookup record.

Use this editorial checkpoint record:

1. Advertised description: item, claimed gold grade and seller
2. Physical marks: what you can read on that exact piece
3. Verification: details returned through BIS Care and the date checked
4. Open question: any discrepancy and who will resolve it

Keep the record tied to the offered item. A successful code lookup should not become a blanket guarantee about everything shown in a listing.

Diagram text

Four editorial checkpoints from the article: advertised description, readable physical marks on the exact piece, the purchaser’s own BIS Care verification with date, and discrepancies still needing resolution. This graphic contains no official logo, invented HUID or simulated app result.

Keep the invoice useful

BIS's jeweller FAQ calls for the description of each article, net precious-metal weight, purity in karatage and fineness, and hallmarking charges on the sale invoice. The same page states that including the HUID on the invoice is voluntary at present. Ask for the code in your purchase record without presenting it as a universally mandatory invoice field. BIS invoice guidance.

Compare the invoice with the agreed item description. If a chain or another component has its own specification, keep that distinction visible. The gold-purity guide helps you interpret karat and fineness wording before asking about a difference.

Check current coverage when it matters

Mandatory gold hallmarking has defined district coverage. BIS's current coverage list includes further phases added during 2026. Use the current official list for the purchase location and ask BIS about an uncertain case. The absence of a mark alone is too little information for an accusation. BIS phase-wise district coverage.

This guide was checked on 3 October 2026. Recheck the official scheme before buying, especially for an older piece or a claim about a newer purity grade.

Finally, ask separate questions about gemstones, coatings and construction. Use laboratory-report reading for gemstone evidence. Finish the gold-mark check with readable marks, a reviewed record and a written explanation of any difference.