New baggage rules: How much gold jewellery you can bring in without duty

Changes shift gold jewellery limits to a weight-based system and remove value caps on personal electronics to improve traveller convenience

India has introduced new baggage rules that allow international travellers to bring more gold jewellery (by weight) to the country and remove the price cap on bringing in a new laptop or notepad.

 

Baggage Rules (2026), notified by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), aim to improve transparency and make travelling to India more convenient.

 

Duty-free jewellery

For Indian residents or persons of Indian origin who have lived abroad for over a year, the new rules allow duty-free import of gold jewellery on a weight basis:

 

Female travellers can bring in up to 40 grams

 

 

Male travellers can bring in up to 20 grams

 

The jewellery must be part of “bona fide personal baggage”, meaning it should not be for sale. Previous rules capped jewellery allowance based on value rather than weight.

 

“The special allowances for jewellery are designed to ease the return of personal belongings for residents and tourists of Indian origin,” a CBIC official said in a statement.

 

General duty-free allowances

 

The new rules increase duty-free allowances for other categories of passengers arriving in India by air or sea:

 

Indian residents and tourists of Indian origin: Rs 75,000 (New allowance limit)

 

Foreign nationals with a valid visa (other than tourist): Rs 75,000

 

Foreign tourists: Rs 25,000

 

Crew members: Rs 2,500

 

Passengers crossing land borders are not entitled to any general duty-free allowances.

 

Other key changes

Transfer of residence benefits: Residents returning after extended stays abroad can bring in goods without paying duty up to a value ranging from Rs 150,000 to Rs 750,000, depending on the duration of stay.

 

Laptops and personal electronics: Passengers aged 18 or above can bring one new laptop or notepad duty-free.

 

Temporary import and re-import: Certificates for temporary carriage of goods are now available to avoid unnecessary detention at customs.

 

Passenger facilitation: Electronic and advance declarations are encouraged, and digital processes have been strengthened to ensure smoother clearance.