‘The Times of India’ brings you ‘Hack of the Day’—a new weekday series of quick, practical solutions to everyday hassles. Each hack is designed to save you time, money or stress, using tools and features within your reach—from government websites to everyday apps. In simple terms, it’s simple fixes for smarter living.’Buying gold in India is rarely a small decision. Whether it is a pair of earrings for daily wear or an elaborate set for a wedding, gold jewellery represents a significant financial commitment, often running into tens of thousands of rupees for even modest pieces. Yet most buyers hand over that money based almost entirely on trust, accepting a shopkeeper’s word about purity without any independent way to verify it.That changed when the Bureau of Indian Standards made hallmarking with a Hallmark Unique Identification number mandatory for gold jewellery sold in India. Every hallmarked piece now carries a six-character alphanumeric code that is registered in a central government database and tied to specific details about that exact article. The purity, the jeweller, the assaying and hallmarking centre, and the type of article are all recorded against that code. And anyone can look it up in under a minute using a free government app.Most buyers do not know this. Many jewellers are counting on that.
What the HUID actually is
Hallmark Unique Identification is a number which consists of a six-character code which is directly stamped on the gold jewellery as part of the BIS hallmarking process. The HUID appears along with the BIS logo, the purity mark such as 916 for 22 karat gold, and the assaying centre’s mark. For those unaware, HUID code is unique for each piece of jewellery, not to the jeweller or the batch. It is important to note that the two identical bangles from the same shop will carry different HUIDs because they are registered as separate articles. This specificity makes the gold verification tool powerful. A fake or recycled hallmark cannot carry a valid HUID which matches the article in front of you, as the HUID is tied to a specific piece registered at a specific purity at a specific centre by a specific registered jeweller.
Here is how to verify it before you pay
In order to verify the jewellery before the purchase, you can simply download the BIS Care app which is available on both Android and iOS operating systems. You can also visit the official BIS website. On the home screen of the app, look for the HUID verification option in the services list and tap it. You will see a simple input field where you type in the six-character code stamped on the jewellery you are considering buying. Enter it carefully, as a single wrong character will return no result. Submit the query and the app will return the registered details for that HUID within seconds. What you are looking for is a match across four things. The purity listed in the app should match what the jeweller is telling you and what appears on the hallmark stamp. The article type should correspond to what you are holding, whether that is a ring, bangle, chain, or necklace. The jeweller’s name in the database should match the shop you are standing in. And the assaying and hallmarking centre listed should be a recognised BIS-certified centre.If all four match, the hallmark is genuine and the purity is what the jeweller claims. If anything does not match, or if the HUID returns no result at all, do not complete the purchase until you have a clear explanation.
Why you should never accept a screenshot
Some jewellers, when asked about HUID verification, may offer to show you the result on their own phone or present a screenshot of the lookup. Do not rely on either. Screenshots can be fabricated in minutes and tell you nothing about the jewellery currently in front of you. Insist on doing the verification yourself on your own device with the code physically read from the jewellery. The entire point of the system is that it is independent and instant.
One important limitation to keep in mind
It is important to note that HUID verification works only to check the purity of jewellery which has been hallmarked under the mandatory hallmarking scheme of BIS. Older pieces or jewellery purchased before the mandatory roll out by BIS or any articles sold without hallmarking cannot be verified using this method. For those, independent purity testing at a certified centre remains the only reliable option.For any new gold purchase, checking the HUID takes less time than deciding which design to choose. It costs nothing, requires no expertise, and is the single most reliable thing you can do to ensure you are getting exactly what you are paying for.
