EU to Abolish Tariffs on Jewelry Imports from India

India’s new trade deal with the European Union will remove duties on finished jewelry from the key Asian country, officials have confirmed.

Europe is one of India’s most important destinations for the category, but tariffs of up to 4% have enabled competitors to dominate the market, the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) said this week.

An Indian government factsheet named gems and jewelry among the products for which the EU will not charge duties under the free-trade agreement (FTA) the pair reached on Tuesday.

This means the current rate of 2% to 4% on finished goods will disappear once the deal passes all the necessary hurdles, GJEPC executive director Sabyasachi Ray told Rapaport News on Thursday. Loose rough and polished diamonds and gemstones from India already enter the EU duty-free, Ray pointed out.

“Zero-duty access to the world’s largest consumer market empowers export hubs in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and West Bengal to ramp up shipments of precious jewelry — plain and studded — silver, and imitation jewelry, capitalizing on India’s renowned design prowess,” said Kirit Bhansali, chairman of the GJEPC. “Especially with exports to the US down by 44% 2026, this timely pact will help Indian exporters salvage lost ground.”

In the opposite direction, India will reduce tariffs on imports of polished diamonds from the EU — which includes Belgium — from 5.5% to 2.5%, as the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) clarified on Wednesday. This also applies to loose gemstones, Ray at the GJEPC noted. India’s 20% import tax on finished jewelry from the EU will likely remain unchanged or slightly reduced, he added.

The timeline for the agreement going into effect is unclear. It still requires legal revision and translation into all official EU languages as well as approval by the European Council and the European Parliament, according to the European Commission. India also needs to ratify the deal.

India’s gem and jewelry exports to the EU amounted to $2.7 billion in 2024, or 9% of the global total, the GJEPC said. However, jewelry shipments to the bloc were relatively low at $628 million, of which $573 million was precious jewelry and $55 million fashion or imitation jewelry, it said, citing the impact of tariffs.

The deal excludes the UK and Switzerland, two of Europe’s largest destinations for gem and jewelry exports, as they are not EU members. However, both have FTAs with India already.

The industry continues to await a trade deal between India and the US, which currently charges 50% tariffs on most items from the dominant producer of polished diamonds. This situation has increased the importance of other export markets.

Image (left to right): António Costa, president of the European Council; Narendra Modi, prime minister of India; and Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, at a summit in New Delhi, India, this week. (European Union)