VAT on Gold and Making Charges in Egypt

The legal basis: Law 67 of 2016

Egypt's value added tax was introduced by Law No. 67 of 2016, with executive regulations issued by Minister of Finance Decree No. 66 of 2017; both have been amended since. The standard rate is 14%. The law taxes goods and services unless they are specifically exempted, and the practical rules for gold jewelry come from a separate protocol.

The 2022 protocol: VAT on the making charge

In April 2022 the Egyptian Tax Authority and the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce signed a protocol setting procedural rules for collecting tax on gold, silver and platinum jewelry and precious stones, under Law 67/2016 and its regulations. According to the chambers at the time, VAT is calculated on the average making charge only, not on the total value of the piece.

• The tax base is the making charge; the value of the metal itself is outside it under the protocol.
• The Tax Authority sets an average making charge per gram for each karat, in coordination with the gold division, and VAT is computed on that average.
• The head of the gold division said traders pay the tax when pieces are stamped, before they are sold.
• The averages applied to pieces stamped after the protocol was signed, with no back-assessment on existing stock.

Average making charges from July 2026

In June 2026 a Tax Authority circular was reported raising the average making charges for gold, silver and platinum by about 10%, effective 1 July 2026 to the end of June 2027. The figures are before the 14% VAT, and the Authority stated they are for tax accounting under the protocol and do not necessarily reflect what shops charge customers.

The hallmark stamp and the assay authority

The stamp (damgha) and VAT are different things. Hallmarking is done by the Egyptian Assay and Weights Authority (Maslahat Damgh al-Masoughat wal-Mawazin) under the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade, which certifies the karat of each piece and charges a fee per gram. Laser stamping, which adds a code with the piece's details, has been rolled out alongside the traditional stamp. We could not confirm current per-karat stamp fees from an up-to-date official source, so ask the authority or the gold division of your chamber of commerce.

What we could not confirm

• The VAT treatment of buying scrap gold from individuals and reselling it.
• Which small shops fall below the VAT registration threshold and how it applies to them.
• Whether and when gold shops must join the e-receipt system.
• Imported jewelry: press coverage says the base at customs is the workmanship value set by customs plus duties, but we did not review the text ourselves.

How GoldCore handles VAT

In GoldCore, VAT is optional, and your accountant decides. If you switch it on, you choose the base: making charge only, making charge plus stones, or the full price. The invoice shows gold, making charge, stones and VAT on separate lines, and there is an optional per-gram stamp fee if you want it shown. That lets the reports give you the VAT collected per shift, ready for your accountant.

Invoices are priced from the gram rate you can follow on gold price today. If you are opening a new shop, read the cost and licences of opening a gold shop in Egypt; if you are choosing a system, see how to choose gold shop software. You can test these settings yourself with a 14-day free trial from the sign-up page.