What To Check In Your Bill When You Buy Gold?

When you are buying physical gold in any form gold bar or coin or jwelery, you should always ask for a bill alongwith a hallmark on the item. Also, ensure that the bill given to you by the jeweller includes certain critical information. The bill note serves as an important piece of evidence in case disputes arises in the future.

As per the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) "It is necessary to take authentic bills/invoice of the hallmarked article from retailer/jeweller. It is necessary for any dispute/misuse/complaint redressal.".

What information should a bill for a hallmarked gold item purchased must have?

As per the BIS, the bill issued issued by jeweller/retailer must have details of hallmarked articles purchased. "Description of each article, net weight of precious metal, purity in carat and fineness, and hallmarking charges need to be mentioned in the bill or invoice of sale of hallmarked precious metal articles. It is also mentioned that "the consumer can get the purity of the hallmarked jewellery/artefacts verified from any of the BIS recognized assaying and hallmarking (A&H) centre."

For example: if you buy a gold ring of 5 grams of 22carat, then the bill of invoice given to you by the jweller must contain the following:

Item name alongwith description: Gold ring
Quantity: 1
Weight: 5 gms
Puity Level: 22 Carat
Prevailing gold rate on the date of date of purchase and making charges
Hallmarking charges:
Value of any gemstone or diamond(if any)
A separate mention of price and weight of stones in the bill
Total amount payable by the buyer

Incase if you have doubts about the purity of gold, then you can visit any BIS recognised assaying and hallmarking (A&H) centre. A nominal fee will be charged for testing. The list of BIS Recognized Assaying and Hallmarking centres is available on the BIS website and can be accessed here: https://lims.bis.gov.in/home/search_is_number/