HSN Code for Imitation Jewellery and GST Rate: 3% Explained

Imitation jewellery falls under HSN heading 7117 and carries GST at 3%. That is 1.5% central GST plus 1.5% State GST on a sale within your State, or 3% integrated GST on a sale to another State. This rate has applied since 22 September 2025, and bangles of lac or shellac are left out of it.

What exactly did we check?

The rates under GST sit in one notification, issued on 17 September 2025 and in force from 22 September 2025. We read a compiled copy of its integrated tax version on a CBIC site. Its Schedule IV, the 3% list, has entry 14 for heading 7117, worded as imitation jewellery other than bangles of lac or shellac. The same schedule carries heading 7113, jewellery of precious metal.

We also read the two amendments of 2026 that we could find. The one dated 27 October 2026 changes only fertiliser and tyre entries. The GST Council meeting of 8 October 2026 recommended no change for jewellery. So on 13 November 2026, 3% still holds.

Which code for which product?

The six and eight digit codes below are from the HSN directory on the GST portal.

Pick the line that describes your piece most closely. If one listing has stones on a brass base, read the directory text for both lines before you settle on one, then use the same code every time. The method is explained in how to find the HSN code for a product.

What about things sold next to jewellery?

Many jewellery sellers also list hair accessories, loose beads for crafts, or gift boxes. These are not heading 7117, and several of them are not 3%.

The rates in this table are from the 5% and 18% schedules of the same notification. A hair clip with a stone on it is still a hair clip in GST terms, because heading 9615 names it directly.

A worked example

You sell a kundan necklace set on a marketplace at Rs 1,030, and that price includes GST.

• Taxable value: Rs 1,030 divided by 1.03 is Rs 1,000.
• GST at 3%: Rs 30.
• Buyer in your own State: Rs 15 central GST and Rs 15 State GST.
• Buyer in another State: Rs 30 integrated GST.

Now suppose the listing was set up with 18% by mistake. The marketplace report then splits the same Rs 1,030 as Rs 872.88 of value and Rs 157.12 of tax. You pay Rs 127.12 more tax on one order than the law asks for. Across 500 orders in a month, that is about Rs 63,560 paid out of your margin. Going the other way is costlier: a hair clip billed at 3% instead of 5% leaves you short of tax, and the shortfall comes with interest when it is found.

What if you sell a set with mixed items?

Say you sell a gift set of earrings and a hair clip at one price. Is that 3% or 5%? Section 8 of the CGST Act says a mixed supply, two or more goods sold together for one price, is taxed at the rate of the item with the highest rate. In this set that is the hair clip at 5%, so the whole set would go at 5%.

Whether a particular set is a mixed supply, or a composite supply where one item is the main thing being sold, depends on the facts. If combo sets are a big part of your sales, take a tax expert's view once and then bill every set the same way.

The mistake sellers usually make

The common slip is letting the marketplace category decide the code. A listing under fashion accessories may pick up a default tax code that has nothing to do with heading 7117. Open your tax settings for each product and check both the code and the rate.

The second is credit. Your packaging and other costs often carry 18% GST, while your sales carry only 3%. Input tax credit, the GST you paid on purchases, can then pile up in your ledger month after month. That is expected for this trade. Whether you can claim a refund of the excess depends on what makes up your purchases, so ask a tax expert before you count on one.

The third is the HSN summary. Table 12 of GSTR-1 needs a row for each code and rate, so a jewellery seller who also sells hair clips will have at least two rows. How many digits to report is covered in HSN digits required in GSTR-1.

Frequently asked questions

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