. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/TBT/N/GBR/15 
11 August 2006 
 (06-3879) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English 
  
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6. 
 
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   UNITED KINGDOM
 
If applicable, name of local government involved (Articles 3.2 and 7.2):         
2. Agency responsible:   Department of Trade and Industry, Consumer and Competition 
Directorate 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, e-mail and web-site 
addresses, if available) of  agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be  indicated if different from above: 
Department of Trade and Industry 
UK TBT Enquiry Point 
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [  X ], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [   ], 5.7.1 [   ], other:         
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading. 
ICS numbers may be provided in  addition, where applicable):   Articles made from 
precious metals (Gold, Platinum and/or Silver) 
5. Title, number of pages and langua ge(s) of the notified document:   The Hallmarking Act 
1973 (Amendment) Regulations 2006 and the Ha llmarking (Hallmarking Act Amendment) 
Order 2006 (6 pages, in English) 
6. Description of content:   These measures are designed to relax the current restrictions in the 
UK on hallmarking articles consisting of combin ations of different precious metals and 
combinations of precious metals and other mate rials (e.g. base metal) and extend the current 
exemption from hallmarking from goods made pr ior to 1920 to goods made prior to 1950, 
thus permitting trade in articles of gold and s ilver made before 1950 which meet the UK’s 
permitted minimum finesses, but which do not  bear an approved hallmark (effectively 
removing the requirement to hallmark these goods in the UK).  In respect of articles of mixed metals, the changes are designed to widen the scope for hallmarking these items by 
requiring UK assay offices to mark to manufac turer instructions where it would not be 
misleading to do so, or, in the absence of inst ructions, or where the assay office refuses to 
mark to instructions, to apply, as appropriat e, the scheme set down in the amendment when 
deciding where to apply the hallmarks in each cas e.  As is the case currently, no hallmarks 
will be placed on precious metals which do not meet the permitted fineness (purity) and the 
Assay offices will not mark goods if, when they  have been marked, there might be doubt as 
to which precious metals are present in an article.   G/TBT/N/GBR/15 
Page 2  
 
   
7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:  
The UK has concluded that its current hallmarking regime is too restrictive in relation to the 
market for goods made from combinations of diffe rent precious metals or of precious metals 
and other materials.  Taking account of the views of the British Hallmarking Council, and 
the UK assay offices it is proposed to rela x these rules to enable greater market 
opportunities in relation to these goods, but retain ing the basic tenets of the UK hallmarking 
regime (third party, independent assaying (tes ting) and marking).  In respect of extending 
the exemption from hallmarking to goods made  prior to 1950; the UK is aware that many 
goods of precious metal from the period 1920 to 1950 which appears on the UK market are 
not hallmarked.  To mark these goods with a modern hallmark (as currently required if the 
goods are to be described as of gold or silver) is  to alter their original state or provenance 
and decrease their value.  The UK has therefor e taken the view that the market in these 
goods is unduly restricted in the UK and that, provided the goods meet the permitted 
minimum fineness, they should be required to be hallmarked before they can be accurately 
described to consumers 
8. Relevant documents:   Consultation Document, incor porating draft Regulatory Impact 
Assessments and draft Regulations – elect ronic version can be downloaded at: -  
http://reporting.dti.gov.uk/cgi-bin/rr.cg i/http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file32836.pdf 
9. Proposed date of adoption:   
Proposed date of entry into force :    October 2006   
end of 2006 
10. Final date for comments:   24 October 2006 
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [  X ] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and web-site addresses, if available of the other body: 
Department of Trade and Industry 
Consumer and Competition Directorate Bay 417, 1 Victoria Street London SW1H 0ET 
 
Tel:  (+44) 20 7215 0329 Fax:  (+44) 20 7215 2837 Email:  kevin.davis@dti.gsi.gov.uk  
http://reporting.dti.gov.uk/cgi-bin/rr.cg i/http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file32836.pdf 
 Department of Trade and Industry UK TBT Enquiry Point Bay 4140, 1 Victoria Street London SW1H 0ET 
 
Tel:  (+44) 20 7215 5580 Fax:  (+44) 20 7215 2234 Email:  marilyn.swain@dti.gsi.gov.uk