RBI further tighten norms for gold import

23 Jul 2013 Evaluate

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its further move to curb the gold import, has imposed restrictions on gold imports by banks and other authorised agencies. As per the RBI’s circular, Nominated banks/ Nominated agencies will have to ensure that at least one fifth of every lot of import of gold (in any form/purity including import of gold coins/dore) is exclusively made available for the purpose of export. 

It further added that they shall make available gold in any form for domestic use only to entities engaged in jewellery business/bullion dealers supplying gold to jewellers. Besides banks and other agencies that import gold, the new regime would cover the bullion refineries that imported gold in raw form. The instructions will, however, not apply to import of gold by units in the SEZ/EOUs/star trading houses who would import gold only for the purpose of exports.

The banks and other entities will also be required to retain 20 per cent of the imported quantity of the gold in customs bonded warehouses, while the imports should be linked to financing of exporters by the nominated agencies. Nominated banks/ Nominated agencies have been asked to ensure that they comply with these instructions while effecting the foreign exchange transactions put through by/for their clients.

The central bank had imposed certain restrictions on import of gold in various forms earlier too. The latest move is aimed at helping manage the country’s precarious current account deficit (CAD) situation and improve gold availability for exporters who were complaining that banks were not importing gold for exporters and that jewellery exports were suffering due to low gold availability.

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