The purpose of this Law shall be to regulate relations in the sphere of circulation of precious metals and precious stones.

This Law shall not apply to transactions between individuals who are not individual entrepreneurs with jewelry and other articles made of precious metals and precious stones owned by individuals on the basis of private ownership.

Legislation on precious metals and precious stones shall consist of this Law and other acts of legislation.

If an international treaty of the Republic of Uzbekistan establishes other rules than those provided for by the legislation of the Republic of Uzbekistan on precious metals and precious stones, then the rules of the international treaty shall apply.

The following basic concepts shall be used in this Law:

fineness means the number of weight units of chemically pure precious metal in one thousand weight units of precious metal alloy;

assaying means determination or confirmation of a fineness of jewelry and other products made of precious metals by established methods;

refining enterprises mean business entities (with the exception of individual entrepreneurs and family enterprises) carrying out activities on the basis of a license for refining precious metals and (or) extracting precious metals from mined ores, concentrates and semi-products, as well as from scrap and waste of precious metals;

nugget means a natural formation (grain, particle) of a precious metal, having a mass of more than 0.3 grams, withdrawn from the mineral raw materials of the precious metal;

jewelry manufacturers mean legal entities and individual entrepreneurs engaged in the production of jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones;

standard bars means bars of refined precious metals that meet the requirements of the regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation, the requirements of the London Precious Metals Market Association (London Palladium and Platinum Market) or the requirements of commodity exchanges;

scrap and waste of precious metals mean products that have lost their consumer and (or) functional properties, including their components, irreparable defects, as well as residues of raw materials, materials, semi-finished products and products containing precious metals formed in the process of production and use;

State Fund of Precious Metals and Precious Stones of the Republic of Uzbekistan mean a fund designed to provide financial, industrial, scientific, socio-cultural and other needs of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

measured bars mean bars of refined precious metals that meet the requirements of regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation or the state that produces bars;

jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones mean used as jewelry, household items and religious items, made of precious metals and their alloys and having fineness not lower than the minimum fineness established by this Law, including those made using various types of decorative processing, with or without inserts of precious stones and other materials, or products made from materials of natural or artificial origin using various types of decorative processing, with inserts of precious stones. Banknotes made of precious metals, standard and measured bars, as well as state awards, insignia and sports awards made of precious metals and precious stones shall not apply to jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones;

refining of precious metals means the process of cleaning extracted precious metals from impurities and related components using the methods of their physical and chemical processing, aimed at bringing precious metals to a quality that complies with the regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation or international standards for refined precious metals;

analysis of precious metals means identification of the chemical composition of the precious metal and the alloy of precious metals from which the product is made, including by using methods that involve its destruction;

precious metals mean gold, silver, platinum and platinum group metals (palladium, iridium, rhodium, ruthenium and osmium) in any form and condition, including native and refined, as well as in raw materials, alloys, semi-finished products, industrial products, chemical compounds, jewelry and other products made of precious metals, banknotes made of precious metals, scrap and waste from production and consumption;

precious stones mean natural diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, alexandrites, natural pearls in raw (natural) and processed form. Unique amber formations are equated to precious stones;

production of precious metals mean extraction of precious metals from mined ores, concentrates, other semi-products, scrap and waste of precious metals, as well as refining of precious metals;

processing (treatment) of scrap and waste of precious metals mean the extraction of precious metal from used or decommissioned products for technical purposes, as well as from scrap and waste containing precious metals, using mechanical, chemical and metallurgical processes aimed at bringing them to quality, that meets the requirements of regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation or international standards for refined precious metals;

extraction of precious metals means a set of works related to the extraction of precious metals from primary (ore), placer deposits and technogenic mineral formations with the production of concentrates and other semi-products containing precious metals;

artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones means mining on the basis of entrepreneurial risk of precious metals and precious stones in subsoil areas, including alluvial gold areas that are not objects of industrial development in quantitative and qualitative terms;

industrial extraction of precious metals and precious stones means extraction of precious metals and precious stones in subsoil areas containing minerals, which in quantitative and qualitative terms are objects of industrial development;

recovery of precious stones means the extraction of precious stones from used or decommissioned tools and other technical products, as well as from waste containing precious stones, followed by bringing (cleaning) them to a quality that meets the requirements of regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation or international standards;

waste of precious stones means waste which contain precious stones in any form and condition, formed during the processing and use of precious stones;

extraction of precious stones means a set of works related to the extraction of precious stones from primary (ore) and alluvial deposits, as well as sorting, primary classification and primary evaluation of precious stones;

sorting and primary classification of precious stones mean the final part of the enrichment process, which allows, on the basis of approved collections of type samples and classifiers, to separate precious stones from the extracted mineral raw materials, and also to separate them into separate grades corresponding to grades accepted on the world market;

initial valuation of precious stones means the final part of the technological process of enrichment, providing the valuation of precious stones on the basis of price lists for precious stones;

hallmarking of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones means the process of applying to jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones an imprint of the state assay hallmark or a fineness mark of the established fineness based on the results of assaying and (or) analysis.

The sphere of circulation of precious metals and precious stones shall include the geological study and exploration of subsoil areas containing precious metals and precious stones, their extraction, production, as well as the performance of a complex of operations with precious metals and precious stones. Operations with precious metals and precious stones shall include:

sale of precious metals and precious stones - actions expressed in the transfer of ownership and other property rights to precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them, as well as scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones, including their use as collateral;

use of precious metals and precious stones for industrial, scientific and socio-cultural purposes;

change in the physical condition or content of precious metals and precious stones in any substances and materials during the extraction, production (refining), subsequent processing (treatment) and use of precious metals and precious stones;

procurement of scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones;

transportation of precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them;

transfer of precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them to places of storage, funds and storerooms, as well as storage and display of precious metals and precious stones;

import into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan and export from its territory of precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them, as well as scrap, waste and raw materials containing precious metals and precious stones.

State regulation in the sphere of circulation of precious metals and precious stones shall be carried out through:

issuance of permits for the right to use subsoil plots for the extraction of precious metals and precious stones;

licensing activities for the refining of precious metals;

implementation of the priority right to purchase mined precious metals and precious stones for the State Fund of Precious Metals and Precious Stones of the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as the formation and replenishment of the assets of the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan in precious metals;

establishing requirements for accounting, storage, transportation of precious metals and precious stones and reporting on them, as well as a unified procedure for carrying out transactions with precious metals and precious stones;

normative legal regulation of the actions of business entities carrying out operations with precious metals and precious stones;

carrying out by authorized state bodies of control over geological study and exploration of subsoil plots, extraction of precious metals and precious stones;

carrying out by the authorized state body of assay control over the production, use and sale of precious metals and precious stones;

determining the procedure for importing into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan and exporting from its territory precious metals and precious stones;

conducting state control over the activities of refineries;

establishment of state control over the assaying and hallmarking of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones.

The Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall ensure the implementation of state policy in the field of circulation of precious metals and precious stones and establish the procedure for:

geological study and exploration of subsoil areas containing precious metals and precious stones;

extraction of raw materials containing precious metals and precious stones, as well as procurement of scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones;

approval of the annual list of subsoil plots where it is allowed to carry out activities for the artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones;

industrial extraction of precious metals and precious stones;

recultivation of waste lands, their return to the reserve fund of local executive authorities;

sale through an electronic auction of the right to use subsoil plots to carry out activities for the artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones;

issuance of permits for the right to use subsoil plots for the extraction of precious metals and precious stones;

carrying out activities for the artisanal extraction of precious metals and precious stones;

implementation of state control over the geological study and exploration of subsoil plots, the extraction of precious metals and precious stones;

classifying nuggets of precious metals, precious stones and amber formations as unique;

organizing the work of refineries;

licensing activities for the refining of precious metals;

purchases and sales of measured bars of precious metals;

issue, placement and circulation of government securities denominated in the mass of precious metals;

carrying out activities for the manufacture of jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones, as well as carrying out work with precious metals and precious stones;

carrying out assaying, sampling, analysis of precious metals, hallmarking of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, as well as conducting a technical examination of prints of state hallmarks of the Republic of Uzbekistan and personal hallmarks of jewelry manufacturers;

sorting, primary classification and primary evaluation of precious stones;

accounting, storage and transportation of precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them, scrap, waste and raw materials containing precious metals and precious stones;

sale of precious metals and precious stones seized and turned into state income, products (items) from them;

transactions with precious metals on stock exchanges;

import into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan and export from its territory, as well as the sale of precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them, scrap, waste and raw materials containing precious metals and precious stones;

formation of the State Fund of Precious Metals and Precious Stones of the Republic of Uzbekistan, implementation and use of its valuables;

application of financial sanctions for violation of the procedure for assaying and hallmarking jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones;

collection and determination of the size of the assay fee.

The Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan may exercise other powers in accordance with the legislation.

The State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan on Geology and Mineral Resources shall:

regulate relations arising from the use of subsoil plots containing precious metals and precious stones;

develop draft normative legal documents in the field of mining of precious metals and precious stones;

approve the annual list of subsoil plots where it is allowed to carry out activities for the artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones;

coordinate the regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation, establishing requirements for industrial and artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones;

implement projects for the exploration of deposits of precious metals and precious stones within the framework of programs for the development and reproduction of the mineral resource base of the republic;

issue a permit for the right to use subsoil plots containing precious metals and precious stones to subjects of industrial and artisanal extraction of precious metals and precious stones.

The State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Geology and Mineral Resources may exercise other powers in accordance with the legislation.

The Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall:

form the State Fund of Precious Metals and Precious Stones of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

develop and approve a price list for precious stones based on the prices used to evaluate similar grades of mineral raw materials on the world market.

coordinate the regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation, establishing requirements for precious metals and precious stones;

approve the schedule of measures for conducting control and inspections of the activities of state enterprises, institutions and organizations, as well as legal entities with a state share in their authorized fund (authorized capital) in the amount of 50 percent or more as part of the implementation of state assay control by the State Assay Chamber under the Ministry Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

develop and approve a price list for precious stones based on the prices used to evaluate similar grades of mineral raw materials on the world market.

The Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan may exercise other powers in accordance with the legislation.

The Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall:

implement the priority right of the state to purchase refined precious metals to replenish assets in precious metals;

set prices for banknotes and bars of precious metals sold by the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan based on prices prevailing in the world market;

establish the procedure for banks to carry out transactions with precious metals, including opening, maintaining and closing by banks of accounts for safekeeping of precious metals and depersonalized (non-physical) accounts of precious metals;

put into circulation banknotes and bars made of precious metals;

establish the procedure for the purchase and sale of banknotes made of precious metals.

The Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan may exercise other powers in accordance with the legislation.

State Assay Chamber under the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan (hereinafter referred to as the Assay Chamber) shall:

participate in the development and implementation of state policy in the field of circulation of precious metals and precious stones;

participate in the development of draft normative legal acts that determine the procedure for assaying, sampling, analysis of precious metals, determining the characteristics of precious stones, including their classification, hallmarking jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, and conducting a technical examination of government imprints of hallmarks of the Republic of Uzbekistan and personal hallmarks of jewelry manufacturers;

exercise state control over compliance with the requirements of the legislation on precious metals and precious stones;

ensure the determination of fineness of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones;

conduct a technical examination of imprints of the state hallmarks of the Republic of Uzbekistan, personal hallmarks of jewelry manufacturers (with the exception of those applied by the laser method) and give conclusions on them;

exercise state control over the compliance of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones with the fineness established by Article 36 of this Law, the requirements of other normative legal acts and regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation;

apply to the court for the application of financial sanctions to business entities selling jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones in violation of the procedure for assaying and hallmarking;

carry out hallmarking of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones with the state hallmark of the Republic of Uzbekistan if they comply with the fineness established by Article 36 of this Law, the requirements of other normative legal acts and regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation;

conduct analysis and technical expertise of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, as well as determination of the characteristics of precious stones, including their classification;

conduct arbitration analysis of precious metals;

conduct technical expertise of archaeological and museum items, museum collections and archival documents containing precious metals or precious stones;

manufacture assay reagents;

carry out licensing of activity on refining of precious metals;

carry out state assay control.

The Assay Chamber may exercise other powers in accordance with the legislation.

The Assay Chamber shall exercise state assay control over:

activities of refineries;

production, processing, use, sale, storage and accounting of precious metals and precious stones;

presence of imprints of assay hallmarks on the jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones for sale;

fulfillment by legal entities and individual entrepreneurs of the requirements in the sphere of circulation of precious metals and precious stones;

production and sale of jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones.

The Assay Chamber shall carry out control measures, as well as verification of compliance with the requirements of this Law by business entities that have a state share in the authorized fund (authorized capital) of less than 50 percent, in agreement with the Commissioner for the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of business entities under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

When exercising state assay control, authorized persons of the Assay Chamber shall have the right to:

request and receive from legal entities and individual entrepreneurs information and documents, as well as written and oral explanations directly related to the inspection;

freely visit the territories, buildings, structures, premises and other objects used by legal entities and individual entrepreneurs in the course of activities in the sphere of circulation of precious metals and precious stones, subject to the presentation of an official certificate and copies of documents that serve as the basis for the inspection;

conduct examination, detour and view of production units of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs, where acceptance, shipment, sampling, chemical analysis and storage of precious metals and precious stones, products (products) from them are carried out, as well as of scrap and waste of precious metals and precious stones;

check the technological process of manufacturing products (items) from precious metals and precious stones;

carry out sampling of precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them for analysis, diagnostics and technical expertise;

check accounting, technical and other documents containing information on the receipt, expenditure, accounting and storage of precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them, as well as scrap and waste of precious metals and precious stones;

initiate an inventory of precious metals and precious stones, as well as products (items) from them;

check the completeness of accounting, collection, preliminary processing of all types of scrap and waste of precious metals and their timely delivery;

check compliance with the requirements of the legislation on assaying and hallmarking of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones;

issue binding orders to legal entities and individual entrepreneurs to eliminate identified violations, causes and conditions that contribute to them;

draw up protocols on administrative offenses;

send materials related to violation of the requirements of the legislation on precious metals and precious stones to the relevant authorized bodies for taking measures in accordance with the legislation.

The grounds for conducting an inspection in the implementation of state assay control shall be:

schedule of measures for the implementation of state assay control over the activities of state enterprises, institutions and organizations, as well as legal entities with a state share in their authorized fund (authorized capital) in the amount of 50 percent or more approved by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

results of the application of the “risk analysis” system, involving the initiation of inspections based on the degree of risk of a business entity to commit violations of the legislation on precious metals and precious stones;

reports of individuals and legal entities about the facts of violation of the requirements of the legislation on precious metals and precious stones.

The Assay Chamber, together with the specially authorized state body for combating the legalization of proceeds from crime, the financing of terrorism and the financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, shall monitor and control the compliance of organizations engaged in transactions with precious metals and precious stones with the requirements of the legislation on combating legalization proceeds from crime, financing terrorism and financing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

State control over the refining activities of legal entities (regardless of the form of ownership) engaged in the industrial extraction of precious metals shall be ensured by carrying out measures to control the production, processing, use, sale, storage and accounting of precious metals at the production facilities of these legal entities.

State control over the refining activities of legal entities engaged in the industrial extraction of precious metals shall be carried out on the basis of a schedule of measures for conducting control in relation to the relevant structural divisions of these legal entities.

When exercising state control over the refining activities of legal entities engaged in the industrial extraction of precious metals, authorized persons of the Assay Chamber shall have the right to conduct:

examination, inspection and view of production units where acceptance, shipment, sampling, chemical analysis, storage, production (refining) of precious metals and manufacture of products (items) from refined precious metals are carried out;

verification of the compliance of the production of precious metals at all technological stages and stages of processing (operations, redistribution) with the requirements of technological documentation;

checking the availability and correctness of maintaining documentation on the procedure for receiving, spending, accounting, movement and storage of precious metals;

verification of the correctness of the work with respect to determination of the content of precious metals in incoming raw materials, finished products (items), scrap and waste of precious metals;

verification of the correctness of transactions with raw materials containing precious metals;

verification of compliance with the procedure for receiving, spending, accounting, movement and storage of precious metals and products (items) from them, as well as maintaining relevant reports;

verification of ensuring the most complete extraction of precious metals from raw materials in accordance with technological standards;

verification of ensuring the completeness of accounting, collection, processing of scrap and waste of precious metals;

verification of the volume of supplies of raw materials subject to refining;

checking the acceptance of refinery raw materials, including control assaying;

verification of compliance with the norms of loss of precious metals in operations;

verification of standards for returnable and conditioned waste of precious metals obtained as a result of refining;

reconciliation (analysis) of the correctness of accounting for conditioned waste, from which the extraction of precious metals cannot be carried out using the technology operating at the refinery;

inventory of precious metals;

checking the timeliness and completeness of the presentation of metallurgical balances of precious metals.

The right to use subsoil plots containing precious metals and precious stones, for individuals and legal entities, shall arise from the moment they receive, in the prescribed manner, the appropriate permit issued by the State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Geology and Mineral Resources.

After the termination of the right to use subsoil plots, individuals and legal entities that have been mining precious metals and precious stones shall be required to take measures to reclaim subsoil plots and bring them into a condition suitable for further use.

In case of non-fulfillment of the obligations provided for in part two of this article, individuals and legal entities that have been mining precious metals and precious stones shall reimburse the local executive authorities on the territory of which the subsoil plots are located for the costs associated with the reclamation of these subsoil plots and bringing them in a condition suitable for further use. The procedure for reimbursement of expenses related to the reclamation of subsoil plots and bringing them into a condition suitable for further use shall be determined by legislation.

Violation of the established procedure for geological study and exploration of subsoil plots for the extraction of precious metals and precious stones shall be the basis for the termination of the permit for the right to use subsoil plots and a ban on engaging in this activity in the manner prescribed by legislation.

The procedure for issuing a permit for the right to use subsoil plots for the extraction of precious metals and precious stones, the conditions for the use of subsoil, as well as measures to eliminate the consequences of subsoil use shall be established by the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On Subsoil”.

Subsoil plots containing precious metals and precious stones shall be the property of the Republic of Uzbekistan, shall be subject to rational use and protected by the state.

Precious metals and precious stones mined in the manner prescribed by legislation may be in state ownership, the property of individuals and legal entities.

The right of ownership to illegally mined precious metals and precious stones shall belong to the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The right of ownership to precious metals and precious stones mined in accordance with the procedure established by legislation shall be protected by the state.

Industrial mining of precious metals and precious stones shall be carried out by legal entities that have received a permit for the right to use subsoil plots for mining precious metals and precious stones (hereinafter referred to as industrial mining entities).

Precious metals and precious stones mined by industrial mining entities from the subsoil, as well as other products and incomes legally received in the industrial mining of precious metals and precious stones, shall be the property of industrial mining entities, unless otherwise provided by production sharing agreements, supply contracts, including government contracts for the supply of goods concluded with industrial production entities, as well as international treaties of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones shall be carried out by individuals and legal entities that have received a permit for the right to use subsoil plots for the activity of artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones (hereinafter referred to as artisanal mining entities).

Permission for the right to use subsoil plots for the activities of artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones shall be issued by the State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Geology and Mineral Resources following the results of an electronic auction.

A permit for the right to use subsoil plots for carrying out activities for the artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones shall be issued to citizens of the Republic of Uzbekistan and legal entities registered in the Republic of Uzbekistan. Requirements for the founders (participants) of legal entities engaged in artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones shall established by legislation.

Transfer (assignment) of the right to use a subsoil plot (in whole or in part) for the activities of artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones (in whole or in part) to third parties shall not be allowed to, as well as issuance of a permit for the right to use one subsoil plot to several persons.

Precious metals and precious stones extracted from the subsoil by entities carrying out extraction by the prospectors' method, with the exception of nuggets of precious metals not subject to refining and unique precious stones, shall be realized at a contractual price to the following:

precious metals - to refineries, as well as business entities that have the right to production of jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones or for work with precious metals;

precious stones - to business entities that have the right to manufacture jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones or to work with precious stones.

Incomes legally received from the sale of precious metals and precious stones extracted by the artisanal method shall be the property of the subjects of artisanal mining.

Concealment of mined precious metals and precious stones, including their non-sale within six months, as well as violation of the requirements for safe work, resulting in serious bodily injury or death of a person, shall be grounds for termination of the right to use subsoil plots for artisanal mining of precious metals and precious stones in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Precious metals refining activities shall be carried out by refining enterprises on the basis of a license issued in accordance with the established procedure.

Refined precious metals shall include precious metals brought to the following parameters by refining:

in refined gold - at least 995 weight units of chemically pure precious metal per one thousand weight units of the precious metal alloy;

in refined silver, platinum, palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, osmium - at least 999 weight units of chemically pure precious metal per one thousand weight units of the precious metal alloy;

in refined iridium - not less than 998 weight units of chemically pure precious metal per one thousand weight units of the precious metal alloy.

Refineries shall have the right, without going through additional permitting procedures to:

determine the percentage of chemically pure precious metal in the raw materials, products (items) transferred to them, as well as scrap and waste containing precious metals;

participate in exchange trading for the purpose of buying and selling precious metals;

carry out the purchase of precious metals, including those mined by artisanal mining, jewelry and other products from precious metals, as well as scrap and waste of precious metals;

open points of purchase and sale of precious metals;

realization of precious metals to manufacturers of jewelry by bringing them into convenient forms and volumes;

production and realization of souvenir coins made of precious metals;

realization of self-produced measured ingots to individuals and legal entities. In this case, the value of realization of ingots shall be determined independently by refining enterprises in an amount not less than the price of the morning fixing of the London Bullion Market Association and the exchange rate of the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the date of settlement.

The activity of manufacturing jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones shall be carried out on the basis of a notification procedure provided for by legislation.

Jewelry manufacturers shall have the right to purchase precious metals and precious stones, including those mined by artisanal mining, jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, jewelry scrap, precious metal discs for dental products, as well as their scrap, for manufacturing from them of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones.

If a jewelry manufacturer has a license to carry out activities related to the circulation of precursors, a license to carry out activities in the refining of precious metals shall not be required.

Manufacturers of jewelry shall have the right to realize to other manufacturers of jewelry semi-finished products of jewelry items made by themselves from precious metals. In this case, the value of realization of semi-finished products shall be determined independently by manufacturers of jewelry in an amount not less than the price of the morning fixing of the London Bullion Market Association and the exchange rate of the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the date of settlement.

The Republic of Uzbekistan, represented by its authorized state bodies, shall have a priority right to purchase precious metals and precious stones mined from subsoil plots.

Nuggets of precious metals and precious stones, which, in accordance with the procedure established by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan, are to be classified as unique, must be offered by the subjects of industrial and artisanal mining to the authorized state body for acquisition on a priority basis.

Subjects of industrial production and refineries, when selling refined precious metals, shall offer them for purchase on a priority basis to the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan in order to replenish its assets in precious metals, unless otherwise stipulated by the terms of the state order.

The Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall inform the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan about the facts of non-fulfillment by legal entities of contractual obligations for the sale of precious metals for state needs.

The Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall have the right to refuse in writing the exercise of the priority right to purchase refined precious metals in order to replenish its assets in precious metals. In this case, industrial production entities and refineries shall have the right to sell refined precious metals through exchanges or under direct contracts.

Acquisition of refined precious metals within the framework of the state's priority right shall be carried out at prices calculated using prices prevailing on the international market, minus transportation costs, sales costs and a quality discount, which is applied in the event of the purchase of refined precious metal that does not meet international quality standards, applied by the London Bullion Market Association and designated in the documents of this association as the standard “London good delivery”.

Nuggets of precious metals that cannot be classified as unique, mineralogical collection samples of these nuggets can be sold at contractual prices by subjects of industrial mining and artisanal mining in accordance with the legislation.

Precious metals and precious stones that are not sold on a priority basis can be sold by industrial mining entities and artisanal mining entities, as well as used in their own production as a pledge or other financial obligation.

The State Fund of Precious Metals and Precious Stones of the Republic of Uzbekistan (hereinafter referred to as the State Fund) shall be replenished by:

precious metals and precious stones, including unique nuggets of precious metals and unique precious stones, acquired at the expense of the State budget of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

seized in the manner prescribed by law of precious metals and precious stones, products (items) from them, scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones;

jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones purchased from individuals and legal entities of historical, artistic or other cultural significance;

hoards of precious metals and precious stones;

ownerless precious metals and precious stones;

precious metals and precious stones transferred to the state by the right of inheritance and donation;

state awards and gifts made of precious metals and precious stones;

precious metals and precious stones credited to the State Fund on other grounds established by legislation.

Precious metals and precious stones credited to the State Fund shall be state property.

Replenishment of the State Fund with precious metals and precious stones, as well as their spending shall be carried out in accordance with the decisions of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan within the funds provided for in the parameters of the State Budget of the Republic of Uzbekistan for the corresponding year.

The organization of the purchase of precious metals and precious stones to the State Fund shall be carried out by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan jointly with the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Valuables credited to the State Fund shall be subject to preliminary examination conducted by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall submit to the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan a report on the replenishment and expenditure of the valuables of the State Fund for the reporting financial year.

Verification of the correctness of storage, accounting and spending of valuables from the State Fund shall be carried out by the Accounts Chamber of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Precious metals and precious stones shall be subject to mandatory accounting during extraction, production, use and sale.

Legal entities with a state share in the authorized fund (authorized capital) in the amount of 50 percent or more shall carry out accounting and storage of precious metals and precious stones in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Legal entities that do not have a state share in the authorized fund (authorized capital) or with a state share of less than 50 percent, as well as individual entrepreneurs, shall carry out accounting and storage of precious metals and precious stones on the basis of independently developed technical documentation for working with precious metals and precious stones.

Accounting and storage of precious metals and precious stones should be organized in such a way that they do not violate the economic interests of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the rights of producers and consumers of products (items) from precious metals and precious stones.

Accounting and storage of precious metals and precious stones shall be organized by name (type), weight (in grams, carats) and quality (by sample, content).

Refined precious metals, precious metals (nuggets) not subject to refining, and precious stones shall be subject to registration with their owners and come into circulation in accordance with this Law.

Legal entities that have discovered precious metals and precious stones as a result of a geological study of the subsoil shall take them into account in the manner established by the State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Geology and Mineral Resources.

Scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones shall be in the ownership, economic management or operational management of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs whose scrap and waste are generated as a result of the production, processing (treatment) and (or) use of precious metals and precious stones.

Legal entities, including military units and military formations, which generate scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones, shall be obliged to collect and record them.

Scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones can be:

independently processed (treated) by legal entities and individual entrepreneurs who own, have economic control or operational management of scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones, for their reuse in their own production;

transferred for processing (treatment) to legal entities that have the right to collect (procure) and process scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones.

Scrap and waste of precious metals can be transferred or sold to refineries.

Waste precious stones can be sold for further production and recovery in the prescribed manner.

Scrap and waste of precious metals must be subjected to pre-treatment to remove materials that cover precious metals (ceramics, plastics, and others) in preparation for delivery to processing plants.

Processing (treatment) of scrap and waste of precious metals and waste of precious stones shall be carried out in accordance with this Law or other acts of legislation.

Business entities that purchase (procurement) scrap and waste of precious metals shall have the right to:

independently process (treatment) the scrap and waste of precious metals they have acquired, if they have the right to carry out this activity on the basis of a notification procedure established by law;

transfer scrap and waste of precious metals for processing (treatment) to legal entities entitled to carry out this activity;

transfer scrap and waste of precious metals to refineries.

Precious metal bars shall be made in the form of standard and measured bars on the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan, with obligatory marking in accordance with the requirements of regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation.

Banknotes made of precious metals, bullions, certified precious stones put into circulation can be freely purchased and used by individuals and legal entities, including non-residents of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Realization of banknotes made of precious metals, measured bars and certified precious stones, as well as the recovery and processing (cutting) of precious stones can be carried out by legal entities that have the right to carry out this activity.

In order to circulate precious metals, individuals and legal entities may use custody accounts for precious metals and depersonalized (non-physical) accounts of precious metals opened by banks for crediting, storing, writing off precious metals, with indicating their type, sample and weight.

The characteristics of precious stones shall be determined in the process of sorting precious stones, their primary classification and primary assessment (in the case of import of precious stones into the Republic of Uzbekistan and their export from the Republic of Uzbekistan), as well as upon completion of the production of products (items) from precious stones. The procedure for identifying precious stones shall be established by the Assay Chamber.

Subjects of industrial mining and subjects of artisanal mining shall have the right to transfer precious stones under an agreement for sorting, primary classification and primary evaluation to other subjects of industrial mining or artisanal mining entities that have the ability to independently sort, primary classify and primary evaluate mined raw precious stones.

Loose precious stones weighing more than 0.3 carats which are sold through trade facilities shall be subject to mandatory certification.

Certified precious stones shall include precious stones that have been certified by an independent gemological center (laboratory) and have an appropriate quality confirmation - a gemological certificate issued in accordance with the procedure established by legislation, confirming the guarantee of the authenticity and quality of a precious stone, containing information about the color group, purity, quality of cutting and polishing, weight and other features of the precious stone.

Sale of loose precious stones shall be carried out only in cut form.

Cut precious stones (over 0.3 carats) to be sold must be individually packaged.

Transactions with precious stones, the classification characteristics of which have not been determined, shall not be allowed.

Precious stones unsuitable for the manufacture of jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones shall be used as products for industrial purposes without restrictions in the manner prescribed by legislation. The criteria and procedure for classifying precious stones as unsuitable for the manufacture of jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones shall be determined by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Legal entities and individual entrepreneurs shall submit information about their transactions with raw precious stones to the Assay Chamber for keeping records of such transactions, in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Retail trade in jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones may be carried out by legal entities on the basis of a notification procedure established by legislation.

Unless otherwise provided by legislation, retail trade in jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones shall be carried out in specialized jewelry stores, departments, sections of shopping centers and (or) complexes.

In specialized jewelry stores, departments, sections of shopping centers and (or) complexes, information on finesses of precious metals established in the Republic of Uzbekistan shall be posted, as well as extracts from regulatory documents establishing the procedure for assaying, analyzing and hallmarking jewelry and other products from precious metals, images of imprints of state assay hallmarks of the Republic of Uzbekistan, imprints of finesses marks of the established sample and other information necessary for the buyer.

The sale of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones produced on the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall be carried out only if they have an imprint of the manufacturerʼs personal brand and a fineness mark of the established sample or an imprint of the manufacturerʼs personal brand and an imprint of the state hallmark of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Responsibility for the authenticity of the fineness indicated on jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones shall lie with the manufacturer of these products.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones offered for retail sale must have sealed labels indicating the name of the product, type of precious metal, fineness, type and characteristics of inserts, including the processing method that has changed the quality, color and cost characteristics of the precious stone, and the retail price of the product. In this respect, in the case of wholesale sales of jewelry and other products made of precious metals, the presence of separate sealed labels on each product shall not be required.

Certain types of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, which, in accordance with the current legislation, are not subject to hallmarking, must have a quality certificate.

Retail trade in the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan of jewelry and other articles made of precious metals and precious stones manufactured abroad shall be carried out in the manner prescribed by acts of legislation.

Work with precious metals and precious stones shall be carried out on the basis of a notification procedure established by legislation.

Works performed with precious metals and precious stones on the basis of a notification procedure shall include:

evaluation of precious stones, as well as jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones;

gemological examination of precious stones;

use and storage of laboratory glassware, catalysts, catalyst gauzes made of precious metals, thermocouples, thermal relays, thermal resistances, equipment containing precious metals and precious stones;

production and (or) application of coatings containing precious metals;

production, use, storage of substances (medicines, salts, reagents, chemical compounds, etc.) containing precious metals;

production, use and storage of discs for dental products, electrodes, anodes, contacts, solders containing precious metals;

use in the production of medical, food, alcoholic and wine and vodka products of precious metals, food additives containing precious metals in their composition;

processing and cutting of precious stones;

use and storage of dies, drawing dies, diamond tips made of natural diamonds, diamond and drilling diamond tools made of natural diamonds;

work on the recovery of diamond tools;

work on the analysis and assay control of precious metals, as well as jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones;

disassembly, pre-treatment, sorting of household, office equipment, medical equipment, recycling of printed circuit boards and other products containing precious metals;

dismantling and disposal of equipment, devices containing precious metals and precious stones in assemblies, as well as delivery to processing enterprises of waste from disassembly and disposal of equipment, devices containing precious metals;

collection (procurement), disassembly, sorting, preliminary (primary) processing of secondary resources, scrap and waste of precious metals for subsequent delivery to processing (refining) enterprises;

use of precious metals in the repair of military and (or) aviation equipment, the use and storage of waste of military and (or) aviation equipment containing precious metals;

extraction of radio components and elements containing precious metals from military and (or) aviation equipment, collection and delivery to processing enterprises of waste from military and (or) aviation equipment containing precious metals;

exposure, storage and restoration of products and objects containing precious metals and precious stones;

restoration (repair) of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, items containing precious metals and precious stones (transferred to the state by decisions of state bodies);

use of silver-containing light-sensitive materials, cine-photo-X-ray films, cine-photo-X-ray plates and similar materials containing precious metals in their composition.

The import of precious metals and precious stones into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan and (or) their export outside shall be carried out in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals produced abroad and imported into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan for subsequent sale must be mandatory assayed and hallmarked at the Assay Chamber.

The legislation may provide for restrictions and prohibitions on the import into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan and on the export from its territory of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones.

Export by individuals - residents and non-residents of the Republic of Uzbekistan, crossing the customs border of the Republic of Uzbekistan, of bars and banknotes of the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan produced in the Republic of Uzbekistan and made of precious metals, can be carried out without restrictions, subject to the availability of appropriate certificates and with the obligatory filling of the passenger customs declarations in case of exceeding the norm of export of goods established by the legislation.

The following shall have the right to carry out the export of standard and measured bars, banknotes made of precious metals:

Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

banks;

business entities that are their owners.

If violations of the requirements of the legislations when making transactions with precious metals and precious stones are detected in the process of state control, their export shall not be allowed, and information about the identified violations shall be transferred to the relevant state bodies.

Business entities shall carry out the import into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan of precious metals and precious stones used in production activities, in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Precious metals and precious stones coming into the ownership of a foreign investor in accordance with the terms of a production sharing agreement may be exported outside the Republic of Uzbekistan without any restrictions or sold on the domestic market on the terms and in the manner prescribed by the agreements and this Law.

The procedure and conditions for making settlements on transactions with precious metals and precious stones shall be determined by agreements.

Settlements for precious metals implemented as part of the execution of the state order shall be carried out in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Geological study and exploration of subsoil plots containing precious metals and precious stones, mining and production of precious metals and mining of precious stones shall be subject to protection in order to ensure the complete safety of precious metals and precious stones, as well as products (items) from them from theft, fires, spoilage in all places of extraction, production, storage and use.

Business entities operating in the field of circulation of precious metals and precious stones shall carry out activities to:

ensure the safety of precious metals and precious stones, as well as products (items) from them;

strengthening places (objects) of protected areas.

Business entities may enter into contracts for the provision of services for the protection of objects, transportation of precious metals and precious stones with organizations specializing in these areas, carry out other activities aimed at ensuring the safety of precious metals and precious stones, as well as products (items) from them.

Precious metals and precious stones, as well as products (items) from them, including those included in the State Fund, can be used for the purpose of exhibiting on the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan and abroad.

Legal entities engaged in exhibiting precious metals and precious stones, as well as products (items) from them must ensure that the mandatory conditions and requirements for ensuring the safety, proper accounting, and safe transportation of precious metals and precious stones , when holding events organized for the purpose of exhibiting, as well as products (items) from them.

Unique nuggets of precious metals, unique precious stones, unique products made of precious metals and precious stones of historical, scientific, artistic or other cultural value, including archaeological and museum objects or museum collections located outside their permanent location, must be returned after the completion of the events organized for the purpose of exhibiting to the place of permanent residence in a mandatory order.

Precious metals and precious stones, as well as products (items) from them, not provided for by part three of this article, as well as not included in the State Fund, can be sold after the completion of events organized for the purpose of their exposure in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones intended for sale on the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan, shall be subject to assaying, analysis and hallmarking with the state hallmark of the Republic of Uzbekistan or a mark of a fineness of the established sample.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones that have an imprint of the hallmark of the assay offices in the form of a star with a sickle and a hammer inside, as well as numbers indicating the fineness of the product shall be subject to mandatory assaying and hallmarking with the state hallmark of the Republic of Uzbekistan when sold through the retail system.

The sale by business entities of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones in violation of the procedure for assaying and hallmarking shall entail:

imposition of a fine in the amount of fifty percent of the cost of jewelry or other products made of precious metals and precious stones, without its confiscation - when committing an offense for the first time;

confiscation of jewelry or other items made of precious metals and precious stones or imposition of a fine in the amount of one hundred percent of its value - in case of repeated commission of this offense within one year.

The procedure for applying a financial sanction for violating the procedure for assaying and hallmarking and confiscation of jewelry or other items made of precious metals and precious stones shall be determined by legislation.

Confiscated jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones shall be subject to mandatory assaying and hallmarking with the state hallmark of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Business entities that have committed a violation of the procedure for assaying and hallmarking or selling jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones that do not correspond to the declared fineness shall be subject to entry into the register of unscrupulous business entities of the jewelry industry with the application of enforcement measures against them in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Manufacturers of jewelry shall have the right to independently determine the fineness and put on the jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, imprints of the fineness mark of the established sample without hallmarking the products with the state assay mark of the Republic of Uzbekistan, but with the obligatory affixing of the registered personal brand of the manufacturer.

Hallmarking of jewelry and other articles made of precious metals and precious stones, accepted by the Assay Chamber from pawnshops, microfinance organizations and individuals, business entities, authorized state bodies (hereinafter referred to as the applicant), shall be carried out on the basis of the results of determining the fineness, and in the presence of a written permission of said applicants — on the basis of the results of analysis.

The procedure for the Assay Chamber to analyze jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones shall be established by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The following shall not be hallmarked:

jewelry and other articles made of precious metals and precious stones having a fineness lower than that established by part two of Article 36 of this Law;

items made of precious metals that are an archaeological or museum object or a museum collection, as well as articles of cultural value, subject to the availability of expert opinion of the authorized body;

small notches (inlay) with precious metals on weapons, vases, dishes, caskets and other items;

gold leaf, silver leaf, gold and silver foil, discs made of precious metals for dental products, the alloy composition of which is established by the regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation;

devices, tools, laboratory glassware and other products made of precious metals intended for scientific, technical and medical purposes, supplied with a brand, label or stamp of the manufacturer indicating the symbol of the metal and other data regulated by the regulatory documents of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of technical regulation;

semi-finished products, standard and measured bars made of precious metals;

banknotes made of precious metals;

state awards, insignia and sports awards;

items made of non-precious metals covered (clad) with precious metal;

jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones which are in transit;

jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, made in the Republic of Uzbekistan, without imprints of personal brands of jewelry manufacturers, with deformed imprints of personal brands of jewelry manufacturers or with the absence of any element (sign) in the imprint;

jewelry and other articles made of precious metals and precious stones that have solder (an alloy of precious metals used to create a permanent connection in a jewelry product) that does not comply with the requirements of Article 57 of this Law.

The following fineness shall be established in the Republic of Uzbekistan:

375 (three hundred and seventy-fifth), 500 (five hundredth), 585 (five hundred and eighty-fifth), 750 (seven hundred and fiftieth), 875 (eight hundred and seventy-fifth), 916 (nine hundred and sixteenth), 958 (nine hundred and fifty-eight), 999 (nine hundred and ninety-ninth) fineness - for jewelry and other products made of gold;

800 (eight hundredth), 875 (eight hundred and seventy-fifth), 925 (nine hundred and twenty-fifth), 960 (nine hundred and sixtieth), 999 (nine hundred and ninety-ninth) fineness - for jewelry and other products made of silver;

850 (eight hundred and fiftieth), 900 (nine hundredth), 950 (nine hundred and fiftieth), 999 (nine hundred and ninety-ninth) fineness - for jewelry and other products made of platinum;

500 (five hundredth), 850 (eight hundred and fiftieth), 999 (nine hundred and ninety-ninth) fineness - for jewelry and other products made of palladium.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones cannot have a fineness below:

375 (three hundred and seventy-fifth) fineness - for jewelry and other products made of gold;

800 (eight hundredth) fineness - for jewelry and other products made of silver;

850 (eight hundred and fiftieth) fineness - for jewelry and other products made of platinum;

500 (five hundredth) fineness - for jewelry and other products made of palladium.

It shall be allowed to manufacture and sell jewelry and other products made of gold of 583 (five hundred and eighty-third) fineness according to individual orders of individuals from jewelry and other products made of precious metals from gold 583 (five hundred and eighty-third) fineness, which belong to them.

Hallmarks shall include state hallmarks of the Republic of Uzbekistan, hallmarks of the established sample and hallmarks of assay chambers of foreign states.

The state hallmarks of the Republic of Uzbekistan (hereinafter referred to as the state hallmarks) shall be deemed hallmarks of the established form for each type of precious metal and consist of a certificate mark and a fineness, which can be applied together (in one contour) or separately.

Forms of state hallmarks shall be established by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The identity badge shall be an octahedron, inside of which there is an image of the Humo bird with the profile of its head turned to the right.

The mark of the fineness of the established sample shall be a hallmark of the form established for each type of precious metal, consisting of numbers indicating the fineness.

The fineness mark of the established sample shall have no independent meaning and when hallmarking jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, shall be used only in combination with the personal brand of the jewelry manufacturer.

Fineness marks of the established sample shall be made at a specialized enterprise by order of jewelry manufacturers.

State hallmarks shall be divided by types into main and additional state hallmarks.

The main state assay hallmarks shall have independent significance, and their presence on jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones shall certify that the alloy corresponds to the fineness indicated on them.

Additional state hallmarks shall have no independent significance and when hallmarking detachable and easily separable components of jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones, shall be used only in combination with one of the main state hallmarks.

The following forms of the main state hallmarks shall be established in the Republic of Uzbekistan in the form of:

octahedron, in which the certificate mark is p, shall be used for hallmarking in combination with an additional state hallmark;

rectangle with a convex-oval left vertical side, consists of a certificate mark and a fineness – shall be used for hallmarking jewelry and other products made of gold;

rectangle, consists of a certificate mark and a fineness – shall be used for hallmarking jewelry and other products made of silver;

rectangle with a convexly truncated left vertical side, consists of a certificate mark and a fineness – shall be used for hallmarking jewelry and other products made of platinum;

rectangle with convex-oval vertical sides, consists of a certificate mark and a fineness – shall be used for hallmarking jewelry and other products made of palladium.

The additional state hallmark shall be established in the form of a square with rounded corners, within which the fineness shall be indicated. An additional state hallmark shall be used for hallmarking detachable and easily separable parts of jewelry and other items made of gold, silver, platinum and palladium.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, manufactured in the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as those that have undergone restoration (repair), must have a distinct imprint of the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer, applied by a mechanical (percussion) method, or an imprint applied by a laser method.

The personal hallmark of a jewelry manufacturer shall consist of a combination of three capital letters of the Latin alphabet and contain information about the jewelry manufacturer in encrypted form.

The personal hallmark of a jewelry manufacturer, intended for application by a mechanical (percussion) method, shall be made at a specialized enterprise by order of a jewelry manufacturer and subject to registration at the Assay Chamber.

The Assay Chamber shall register the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer, intended for application by a mechanical (percussion) method, on the basis of the provided distinct imprint of the personal hallmark (surface, medium, deep) on a polished brass plate in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Hallmarking of jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones with the state assay hallmark or standard fineness mark shall be carried out by mechanical (percussion) method or by laser method.

The choice of the method of applying the state hallmark shall be determined by the Assay Chamber in agreement with the person presenting them for assaying and hallmarking.

The manufacturer of jewelry shall independently determine the method of applying the personal brand of the manufacturer and the mark of the fineness of the established sample.

The manufacturer of jewelry, carrying out hallmarking of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones with a personal hallmark of the manufacturer by the laser method, shall be obliged to confirm its authenticity.

The Assay Chamber and its branches shall be the custodian and user of the State Assay Hallmarks.

The custodian and user of the personal hallmark of the manufacturer of jewelry and the hallmark of the fineness of the established sample shall be the manufacturer of jewelry.

The transfer of the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer and the hallmark of the fineness of the established sample to other persons shall be prohibited.

The Assay Chamber shall charge an assay fee for performance of legally significant actions related to the determination of fineness and hallmarking of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones.

The size and procedure for collecting the assay fee shall be established by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The costs associated with the determination of fineness and hallmarking shall be borne by persons who have presented jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones to the Assay Chamber for assaying and hallmarking.

The main state hallmark can be applied to the following jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones:

made in the Republic of Uzbekistan;

undergone restoration (repair);

with imprints of assay marks and symbols of assay chambers of foreign countries;

with imprints of hallmarks in the form of a star with a hammer and sickle inside and numbers indicating the hallmark;

with polished and indistinct imprints of hallmarks.

On jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones that have imprints of state assay marks and presented to the Assay Chamber for assaying and hallmarking or confirming the correspondence of the fineness indicated on the product, an imprint of the certificate mark may be applied after a technical examination to determine the authenticity of the state assay hallmark.

In this respect, where the fineness of a jewelry or other product made of precious metals and precious stones does not correspond to the existing imprint of the hallmark, then the imprint of the hallmark shall be clogged by the Assay Chamber, and the products shall be subject to hallmarking with the main state assay hallmark according to the next lower fineness.

If it is not possible to apply the certificate mark and fineness mark together (in one contour) to the main part of a jewelry or other product made of precious metals and precious stones, then an imprint of the certificate mark and an imprint of an additional state hallmark of the corresponding fineness shall be applied in a place accessible for hallmarking next to the imprint of personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer.

When hallmarking jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, such as earrings, cufflinks and other items used in pairs, an imprint of the main state hallmark shall be applied to each such item.

When hallmarking jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones, consisting of soldered and inseparable parts made of one alloy, the imprint of the main state hallmark shall be applied only to the main part of the item.

An additional state hallmark shall be applied to detachable and easily separable parts of jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones.

In cases where the size and location of detachable and easily separable parts of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones do not allow the imprint of an additional state hallmark, the content of precious metal in such parts shall not be confirmed and responsibility for fineness of such parts of jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones shall be borne by the manufacturer of these products.

On jewelry or other product made of precious metals and precious stones, manufactured of one precious metal, consisting of several parts having different fineness, an imprint of the main state hallmark shall be applied to the main part of the product, and an imprint of an additional state hallmark of the corresponding fineness shall be applied to detachable and easily separable parts of the product.

On jewelry or other product made of precious metals and precious stones, separate parts of which are made of various precious metals, an imprint of the main state hallmark shall be applied to the main part of the product, and an imprint of an additional state hallmark of the corresponding metal and corresponding fineness shall be applied to detachable and easily separable parts of the product.

If jewelry or other item made of precious metals and precious stones is covered with other precious metals, then the main part of the item shall be imprinted with the main state hallmark for the base alloy of the precious metal, and the hallmark shall not be applied to the additional part. In this respect, an imprint of an additional state hallmark of the corresponding fineness shall applied to the detachable and easily separable parts of the product.

Jewelry or other product made of precious metals and precious stones, consisting of soldered and inseparable parts of different fineness or different precious metals, shall be considered as a single product. In this case, the imprint of the main state hallmark shall be applied to the main part of the product, and the imprint of the additional state hallmark of the corresponding metal and fineness shall be applied to the soldered and inseparable parts of the product.

The fineness hallmark of the established sample shall be applied by the manufacturer of jewelry to jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones, manufactured and restored (repaired) by them, without mandatory state assaying and hallmarking.

Manufacturers of jewelry shall have the right not to hallmark the jewelry and other products made by them from precious metals and precious stones intended for export, provided that this is provided for by the contract.

When hallmarking jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones, such as earrings, cufflinks and other items used in pairs, an imprint of the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer and a fineness hallmark of the established sample shall be applied to each such item.

When hallmarking jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones, consisting of soldered and inseparable parts made of one alloy, imprints of the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer and the fineness hallmark of the established sample shall be applied only to the main part of the product.

On detachable and easily separable parts of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, an imprint of the fineness hallmark of the established sample shall be applied.

In cases where the size and location of detachable and easily separable parts of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones do not allow the imprint of the fineness hallmark of the established sample, the content of precious metal in such parts shall not be confirmed and responsibility for assaying such parts of jewelry and other products from precious metals and precious stones shall be borne by the manufacturer of these products.

On jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, consisting of several parts, made of the same precious metal, but having different fineness, an imprint of the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer and the fineness hallmark of the established sample shall be applied to the main part of the product, and detachable and easily separable parts of the product shall be imprinted with the fineness hallmark of the established sample of the corresponding fineness.

On jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, the individual parts of which are made of various precious metals, an imprint of the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer and the fineness hallmark of the established sample shall be applied to the main part of the product, and on detachable and easily separable parts of the product an imprint of the fineness hallmark of the established sample of the corresponding metal and fineness shall be applied.

On jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones coated with other precious metals, the main part of the product shall be imprinted with the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer and the fineness hallmark of the established sample (for the main alloy of the precious metal), and on the detachable and easily separable parts of the product an imprint of the fineness hallmark of the established sample of the corresponding metal and fineness shall be applied.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, consisting of soldered and inseparable parts of different fineness or made of other precious metals, shall be considered as a single product. Hallmarking the main part of these products with the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer and the fineness hallmark of the established sample, and the secondary and additional parts - with the mark of the fineness hallmark of the established sample of the corresponding metal and fineness shall be allowed.

The following jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones intended for sale on the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall be subject to assaying, analysis and hallmarking with the state hallmark:

imported into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

realized by microfinance organizations and pawnshops on the basis of a writ of execution of a notary;

gratuitously transferred to state ownership (refusal in favor of the state);

converted to state revenue;

submitted by individuals.

Jewelry manufacturers shall have the right to present their manufactured and (or) restored (repaired) products for assaying, analysis and hallmarking with the state hallmark to the Assay Chamber.

In case of damage and deformation of prints of state assay marks by jewelry manufacturers, re-hallmarking shall be carried out on a common basis.

Jewelry manufacturers shall submit completed and assembled jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones to the Assay Chamber for assaying, analysis and hallmarking.

If it is impossible to present jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones in a completed and assembled form, jewelry manufacturers may present to the Assay Chamber products in an unfinished and disassembled form if all parts of the products are present. In this respect, all secondary and additional parts of the products shall be subject to hallmarking with an additional state hallmark. In finished products, secondary and additional parts of the product must be soldered.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones presented to the Assay Chamber for assaying, analysis and hallmarking must be sorted into lots. When handing over jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones to the Assay Chamber, jewelry manufacturers shall indicate in the application the composition of the alloy of products (except for those made per orders of individuals, from jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones belonging to them, as well as restoration (repair)) and the declared fineness.

Jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones that have undergone restoration (repair) must have an imprint of the personal hallmark of the jewelry manufacturer and a restoration mark in the form of the letter “R”, applied with mechanical (percussion) or laser method.

Jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones shall be deemed to correspond to the declared fineness if the content of the base precious metal in them corresponds to the fineness established by Article 36 of this Law.

If jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, manufactured in the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as those that have undergone restoration (repair), do not correspond to the declared fineness, then with the written consent of the person who presented the products to the Assay Chamber, the imprints of the hallmarks on the products shall be clogged. In this respect, jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones shall be subject to hallmarking with the state hallmark of the next lower fineness than the established. In the absence of the consent of the applicant, the products shall be returned not hallmarked.

Jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones imported for commercial purposes into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan must have distinct imprints of assay hallmarks of assay chambers of foreign states in the metric or carat system of fineness or other signs indicating the fineness of the product, except for cases established by legislation for this type of goods imported by individuals for their own needs. In this respect, the procedure for monitoring the presence of imprints of assay hallmarks in the metric or carat system of fineness or other signs indicating the fineness of the product shall be determined by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

If jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones imported into the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan, presented for assaying, analysis and hallmarking to the Assay Chamber, have prints of hallmarks that do not correspond to the declared fineness, then with the written consent of the person who presented the products to the Assay Chamber, prints of assay hallmarks on products shall be clogged. In this respect, jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones shall be subject to hallmarking with the state assay mark of the next lower fineness than the established. In the absence of the consent of the applicant, the products shall be returned not hallmarked.

Jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones that have undergone restoration (repair) and are intended for sale may be presented to the Assay Chamber for a control check for their correspondence with the declared fineness, regardless of the presence and quality of the prints of assay hallmarks previously applied to them.

If a fineness of a jewelry or other item made of precious metals and precious stones that has undergone restoration (repair) corresponds to the existing hallmark imprint, then an imprint of the state assay mark shall be applied.

If a fineness of a jewelry or other item made of precious metals and precious stones that has undergone restoration (repair) does not correspond to the existing hallmark imprint, then with the written consent of the person who presented the product to the Assay Chamber, the imprint of the hallmark shall be clogged and the product shall be subject to hallmarking with the state assay mark of the next lower fineness than the established. In the absence of the consent of the applicant, the products shall be returned not hallmarked.

If a fineness of a jewelry or other item made of precious metals and precious stones that has undergone restoration (repair) does not correspond to the existing hallmark imprint, then with the written consent of the person who presented the product to the Assay Chamber, the imprint of the hallmark shall be clogged and the product shall be subject to hallmarking with the state assay mark of the next lower fineness than the established. In the absence of the consent of the applicant, the products shall be returned not hallmarked.

Solders used in the manufacture or restoration (repair) of jewelry or other products made of precious metals and precious stones must be made on the basis of the same precious metals as the alloys from which these products are made, except for the cases established by this article.

Solders for jewelry or other precious metal products made of gold, platinum and palladium must have the same fineness as the base alloy from which the products are made.

It shall be allowed to have white gold solder of 585 (five hundred and eighty-fifth) and 750 (seven hundred and fiftieth) fineness in jewelry or other products made of platinum and palladium.

Solder for jewelry or other silver products must have a fineness of at least 650 (six hundred and fiftieth) fineness.

Jewelry and other products made of gold containing solder that does not correspond to the fineness of the alloy from which the products are made shall be hallmarked with the next lower fineness than the established (but not lower than 375 (three hundred and seventy-fifth) fineness).

In jewelry or other items made of precious metals and precious stones, use of solder that does not contain precious metals shall be allowed, provided that the fineness of these products, together with the solder, is within the limits of the alloy from which the products are made.

Jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones subject to assaying, analysis and hallmarking with the state assay hallmark or mark of fineness of the established sample shall not contain parts made of non-precious metals, with the exception of:

watch mechanisms, lighters and other similar products, which for technical reasons cannot be made of precious metals;

blades of knives, screw parts of corkscrews and other similar parts of products that cannot be made of precious metals;

springs in locking mechanisms, hinge pins, as well as brooch pins, tie clips, badges, insignia, state awards.

Hallmarking with the state assay hallmark or mark of the established fineness of jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones, which are a combination of parts made of precious metals with detachable and easily separable parts made of non-precious metals, shall be carried out in the presence of a special imprint (“met”, “stainless” , “steel” and others) or a designation indicating the presence of non-precious metal, which is applied by jewelry manufacturers to parts made of non-precious metals, except for the cases specified in part one of this article. In the absence of a special imprint on parts made of non-precious metals indicating the presence of non-precious metal, the products shall not be subject to hallmarking with a state assay hallmark or a mark of fineness of the established sample.

Non-metallic parts (inserts, enamel, niello) may be used in jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones, provided that they differ in appearance from precious metals. In this respect, non-metallic parts of products should not have a coating or color that imitates precious metals.

Filling the handles of knives, forks and similar products with non-metallic materials shall be allowed in the amounts necessary to secure them.

Jewelry and other items made of precious metals and precious stones, manufactured with using non-metal parts, must have a special imprint indicating the range of weight of the precious metal. These products shall be subject to assaying, analysis and hallmarking in disassembled and unfinished form, but with the full presence of all parts made of precious metals. In finished products, secondary and additional parts of the product must be soldered. Secondary and additional parts of products must be hallmarked with a state hallmark or a fineness hallmark of the established sample.

Jewelry manufacturers shall submit to the Assay Chamber for assaying, analysis and hallmarking jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones without non-metal parts.

Decisions of state bodies, actions (inaction) of their officials in the sphere of circulation of precious metals and precious stones may be appealed to a higher body or court.

Losses caused to individuals and legal entities as a result of illegal actions (inaction) of state bodies or their officials in the sphere of circulation of precious metals and precious stones shall be compensated in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Disputes arising in the sphere of circulation of precious metals and precious stones shall be resolved in the manner prescribed by legislation.

Persons guilty of violating the legislation on precious metals and precious stones shall bear liability in accordance with the established procedure.

1. To introduce the following amendments to the Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan on administrative responsibility, approved by the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated September 22, 1994 No. 2015-XII (Bulletin of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 1995, No. 3, Art. 6; Bulletin of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 1995, No. 9, Art. 193, no. 12, art. 269; 1996, No. 5-6, article 69, No. 9, article. 144; 1997, No. 2, article 56, No. 4-5, article 126, No. 9, article 241; 1998, No. 3, article 38, No. 5-6, article 102, No. 9, article 181; 1999, No. 1, article 20, No. 5, article 124, No. 9, article 229; 2000, No. 5-6, article 153, No. 7-8, article 217; 2001, No. 1-2, pp. 23, No. 9-10, pp. 165, 182; 2002, No. 1, pp. 20, No. 9, pp. 165; 2003 , No. 1, article 8, No. 5, article 67, No. 9-10, article 149; 2004, No. 1-2, article 18, No. 5, article 90, No. 9, article 171 ; 2005, No. 1, article 18; Bulletin of the chambers of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 2005, No. 9, article 312, No. 12, articles 413, 417, 418; 2006, No. 6, article 261 , No. 9, art. 498, no. 10, art. 536, no. 12, art. 656, 659; 2007, No. 4, art. 158, 159, 164, 165, No. 9, art. 416, 421, No. 12, art. 596, 604, 607; 2008, No. 4, art. 181, 189, 192, No. 9, art. 486, 488, No. 12, art. 640, 641; 2009, No. 1, art. 1, No. 9, art. 334, 335, 337, no. 10, art. 380, No. 12, art. 462, 468, 470, 472, 474; 2010, No. 5, art. 175, 179, No. 6, Art. 231, No. 9, art. 335, 339, 341, no. 10, art. 380, No. 12, art. 468, 473, 474; 2011, No. 1, art. 1, No. 4, art. 104, 105, No. 9, art. 247, 252, no. 12/2, art. 365; 2012, No. 4, art. 108, no. 9/1, art. 242, no. 12, art. 336; 2013, No. 4, art. 98, no. 10, art. 263; 2014, No. 1, art. 2, no. 5, art. 130, no. 9, art. 244, No. 12, art. 341, 343; 2015, No. 6, art. 228, No. 8, art. 310, 312, no. 12, art. 452; 2016, No. 1, art. 2, no. 4, art. 125, no. 9, art. 276, No. 12, art. 383, 385; 2017, No. 4, art. 137, no. 6, art. 300, no. 9, art. 510, no. 10, art. 605; 2018, No. 1, art. 1, 4, 5, No. 4, art. 224, No. 7, art. 430, 431, 432, No. 10, Art. 671, 673, 679; 2019, No. 1, art. 1, 3, 5, No. 2, Art. 47, No. 3, art. 161, 165, 166, No. 5, art. 259, 261, 267, 268, no. 7, art. 386, No. 8, art. 469, 471, No. 9, art. 591, 592, No. 10, art. 674, 676, No. 11, art. 787, 791, No. 12, art. 880, 891; 2020, No. 1, Art. 4, No. 3, art. 203, 204, No. 7, Art. 449, No. 9, art. 539, 540, No. 10, Art. 593, 596, no. 11, art. 651, no. 12, art. 691; 2021, No. 1, Art. 5, 7, 12, 13, 14, No. 2, art. 142, no. 3, art. 217):

1) title and disposition of Article 219 shall be amended as follows:

“Article 219. Violation of the legislation on precious metals and precious stones

Violation of the rules for obtaining, spending, accounting, storage in the production, processing, use of precious metals and precious stones or products containing them, collection and delivery of their scrap and waste to the State Fund, as well as the procedure for assaying and hallmarking jewelry and other products made of precious metals and precious stones – ”;

2) the text of Article 268 shall be stated as follows:

“The bodies of the State Assay Chamber under the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall have jurisdiction over cases of administrative offenses provided for in Article 219 of this Code.

The head of the State Assay Chamber under the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan shall have the right to consider cases of administrative offenses and apply administrative penalties on behalf of the state assay control bodies.

2. To recognize as invalid:

1) Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated December 7, 2001 No. 317-II “On fineness and hallmarking of products made of precious metals” (Bulletin of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 2002, No. 1, article 17);

2) Resolution of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated December 7, 2001 No. 318-II “On the Enactment of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On Fineness and Hallmarking of Products from Precious Metals” (Bulletin of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 2002, No. 1, art. eighteen);

3) section XXVI of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated April 30, 2004 No. 621-II “On amendments and additions to certain legislative acts of the Republic of Uzbekistan” (Bulletin of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 2004, No. 5, art. 90);

4) Article 4 of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated September 15, 2005 No. ZRU-5 “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Connection with the Reorganization of Certain State Government Bodies” (Bulletin of the Chambers of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 2005, No. 9, 309);

5) article 21 of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated September 4, 2014 No. ZRU-373 “On amendments and additions to certain legislative acts of the Republic of Uzbekistan” (Bulletin of the chambers of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 2014, No. 9, art. 244);

6) Article 24 of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated June 13, 2017 No. ZRU-436 “On the introduction of amendments and additions, as well as the invalidation of certain legislative acts of the Republic of Uzbekistan” (Bulletin of the chambers of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 2017, No. 6, art. .300).

To the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan and other interested organizations to ensure the execution, communication to the executors and explanation among the population of the essence and significance of this Law.

To the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan:

to bring government decisions in line with this Law;

to ensure the revision and cancellation by the state administration bodies of their normative legal acts that are contrary to this Law.

This Law shall enter into force upon expire of three months after its official publication.