The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) has responded to the United States' implementation of its new Section 301 tariff regime, which came into effect on 24 July 2026 and maintains the additional tariff on Indian gem and jewellery exports at 10%.
The revised framework follows investigations by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) into the enforcement of prohibitions on imports produced with forced labour across 60 economies. Under the new regime, India has been placed in the lower 10% tariff band after introducing a prohibition on imports produced with forced labour, while several competing manufacturing and trading centres, including China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Türkiye, the UAE, Israel and Vietnam, face an additional tariff of 12.5%.
Although the revised tariff structure gives India a 2.5 percentage-point advantage over these markets, GJEPC said the continued 10% duty remains a challenge for the country's gem and jewellery exports, particularly for natural diamonds.
At the outset, we categorically reject any implication that India’s gem and jewellery sector is linked to forced labour. Repeated studies have been commissioned that demonstrates the industry’s long-standing commitment to responsible sourcing, worker welfare, and ethical business practices. We also welcome the Government of India’s recent amendment to the Foreign Trade Policy that bars the import of goods produced, wholly or partly, with forced labour — an important step that reinforces India’s commitment to human rights and aligns our trade rules with internationally accepted labour standards. So imposing of 10% U.S. tariff under the new Section 301 regime, which is not at all justified, remains a challenge for India's gem and jewellery exports, particularly as key competing trading centres in diamond continue to enjoy duty-free access for natural diamonds. While India's placement in the lower tariff band offers some relative competitiveness in terms of jewellery, bridging the remaining tariff gap through an early India–U.S. Bilateral Trade Agreement and securing tariff relief for natural diamonds and coloured gemstones as provided to countries like EU, Malaysia remain our key priorities.
Kirit Bhansali, Chairman, GJEPC
GJEPC noted that jewellery exports to the U.S. will continue to attract the existing Most Favoured Nation (MFN) duty of 5.5–6%, in addition to the 10% Section 301 tariff, taking the effective import duty to approximately 15.5–16%. The Council also pointed out that lab-grown diamonds and synthetic stones remain subject to the additional tariff, while natural diamonds imported through the European Union continue to attract no additional duty, widening the competitive gap for Indian exporters.
The Council said it is engaging with the Government of India to pursue an early India–U.S. Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) and has reiterated that natural diamonds and coloured gemstones should be exempted from the additional tariff under Annex III.
