Government introduces voluntary silver jewellery hallmarking with digital traceability

New Delhi: The Centre on Thursday said it has introduced voluntary hallmarking for silver effective September 1, with digital traceability.

"This decision will help consumers in ensuring purity of the metal while purchasing," the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said in a statement.

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) revised its hallmarking standard with the publication of IS 2112:2025, replacing the earlier IS 2112:2014 version.

The revision introduces Hallmarking Unique Identification (HUID)-based hallmarking for silver jewellery and articles, enhancing traceability and aligning with the existing gold hallmarking system.

Under the new system, consumers can identify article type, purity grade, hallmarking date, testing centre details and jeweller registration number of silver jewellery hallmarked after September 1, 2025, using the BIS Care mobile application.

The revised standard introduces seven purity grades - 800, 835, 925, 958, 970, 990, and 999 - with grades 958 and 999 newly added. The hallmark consists of three components: BIS Standard Mark with the word 'SILVER', purity grade, and HUID code.

Presently, there are around 230 Assaying and Hallmarking Centres (AHCs) recognised by BIS for testing of silver jewellery, spread across 87 districts of the country. In the financial year 2024–25, over 32 lakh silver jewellery articles were hallmarked, the statement said.

BIS is also undertaking extensive awareness-generation initiatives through its network of Branch Offices and via social media platforms to ensure wider dissemination of information on HUID-based silver hallmarking, the statement added.

This step would strengthen the consumer rights and safeguard consumers against any malpractice, the statement said.