Delhi-based Pooja Seth, was returning home after a brief vacation in Thailand when her gold jewellery was confiscated at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport in January 2025.
Seth was stopped by Customs officials who seized her gold jewellery weighing 190 g (four gold bangles weighing 78 g, a gold bangle weighing 45 g, and a gold chain with a gold pendant weighing 67 g). They claimed it exceeded the permissible limit and had not been declared.
She moved the Delhi High Court, producing old family photographs and a copy of her grandmother's will dated December 21, 2018, to prove that the jewellery belonged to her.
On April 1, the Delhi High Court imposed a penalty of INR 25,000 on the Customs Department, remarking that “the gold jewellery was not liable to be seized, as the same are personal effects of the petitioner." They also ordered Customs officials to refrain from "unnecessarily detaining" jewellery at airports, including items worn during travel, unless there is clear evidence of violation.
Outlook Traveller spoke to Richa Kumari (Seth's lawyer) who said, "Under Rule 3 of Baggage Rules, used personal effects like jewellery worn while travelling are permitted. For instance, if a person travels to Dubai wearing a 50 gm gold chain, Customs officials are not supposed to detain them on their return."
If you are still unclear about the rules and regulations governing wearing or carrying jewellery when you are flying into India, here’s what the law currently says:
In Bags:
According to Rule 5 of the Baggage Rules, 2016, if you've been living outside India for over a year:
Men can bring in 20 gm of gold valued at up to INR 50,000 duty-free
Women can bring in 40 gm of gold valued at up to INR 1 lakh duty-free
But this applies only to jewellery brought as baggage, not the one worn on the body.
Rule 3 of the Baggage Rules 2016 permits the used personal effects, including articles worn during travel. This rule becomes crucial for short-term travellers like Seth. The rule states that articles worth up to INR 50,000, if carried on the person or in accompanied baggage, are allowed clearance free of duty.
The Baggage Rules 2016 does not count jewellery as part of personal effects. However, Rule 3 mentions items carried on the person or in Baggage, which indirectly includes ornaments or jewellery. This creates confusion among passengers about how much jewellery they can carry.
“There’s confusion about what counts as used personal effects. There needs to be more clarity over it, ” said a Customs official.
Gold jewellery of Indian origin is exempt from duty. However, if the total value (of the said jewellery) exceeds the allowable limit, it must be declared before departure.
Gold within permissible weight and value limits (if in baggage and eligible under Rule 5)
"Travellers wearing jewellery beyond the permissible limit must ensure that it is of Indian origin by declaring the jewellery at the time of departure. If the traveller exceeds the set limit of foreign-origin gold, they have the option of declaring it in the Red Channel and paying customs duties upon arrival," said a Customs official to Outlook Traveller. Besides, if you have newly purchased jewellery abroad, keep receipts ready.
The Delhi High Court observed that the Baggage Rules are “outdated and archaic,” especially considering the rise in gold prices and the evolving travel habits of Indians. The current thresholds do not reflect present-day realities, and enforcement has led to frequent harassment.
Kumari pointed out that the value cap of INR 1 lakh is outdated. “That barely covers a pair of gold bangles today,” she said. The court echoed this, urging the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) to conduct stakeholder consultations and modernise the rules.
This isn’t the first case of its kind. In an earlier judgement—Rahul Vattamparambil Remesh v. Union of India and Others—the Delhi HC had already declared that personal jewellery cannot be confiscated arbitrarily. Multiple petitions have been filed—by both Indian and foreign-origin travellers—over the alleged arbitrary seizure of personal goods, especially jewellery, at Indian airports.
It also warned the authorities that failure to act on updating these rules could lead to the court stepping in to frame a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP).
