Finance, Forex and Investments

Is it legal to post several thousand pounds worth of jewellery from India to the UK on a tourist visa?

I have been approached (in India) to post a rather large amount of jewellery to the UK, on behalf of an Indian jewellery wholesaler. Once in the UK, I would then give him the jewellery. I am being offered money for this. Is this legal? I suspect it's not for him, but I want to be clear. Basically the offer is made because I am on a tourist visa and I am therefore allowed to post a certain amount of jewellery back to the UK tax-free. By getting me to do this, he can avoid taxation. He then sells the jewellery in the UK. Could I face charges in either India or the UK for this? It turned out this is a famous scam in India called the "Agra Gem Scam". Luckily, I didn't take them up on their offer and my credit card is safe and sound.

Public Comments

1. It sounds like a scam to me.
2. I think it's illegal. In Portugal where I live it's entirely illegal to import jewelry, gold or precious stones, without government consent. About 5 years ago a famous guy arrived from the US with a bunch of jewelry that he stated belonged to him. He was arrested at the airport, and eventually lost all the jewelry and paid a fine. There are a certain number of European Union rules that have to be obeyed to make jewelry imports. I wouldn't mess with it, if I were you. Why don't you contact the UK embassy? Ask if you can buy jewels for yourself in India and send them to the UK, ask how many. New delhi UK embassy: (91-11) 26872161