Guidance

Permitted descriptions for gold plated silver articles in the UK

Updated 18 December 2023

This guidance sets out the permitted descriptions for gold plated silver articles in the UK. The British Hallmarking Council approved this guidance on 15 April 2013. It was then amended in 2016 and 2023.

The British Hallmarking Council and UK Assay Offices receive many trade and consumer enquiries about the legitimacy of descriptions used at the point of sale for gold plated sterling silver items.

Descriptions used for gold plated silver items are often misleading. Many descriptions do not mention silver or that items are plated, and often make specific references to gold fineness. This can lead the consumer or buyer to believe they are buying only gold when they are only buying silver.

The UK Hallmarking Act 1973 Schedule 1 Part 1, paragraph 1(1) (a) makes provision for the description of gold plated articles. The Act sets out to protect the use of the words “gold”, “silver”, “platinum” and “palladium”. If an article is not gold Schedule 1 Part 1 paragraph 1(1) (a) of the Act permits the use of the word “gold”, provided it is followed by the word ‘plated’.

Examples of misleading descriptions include: “22ct gold clad ring” and “22ct gold vermeil ring”. In both cases these items were silver with thin gold plating. They’re described as gold, with no reference to silver and the descriptions do not use the word “plated”.

1. Use of ‘gold plated’ in descriptions

1.1 When the word ‘gold’ or a specific gold fineness description is used to describe a gold plated silver article; the article must be described as silver and the word ‘gold’ must be directly followed by the word ‘plated’ in the description. For example 18ct gold plated silver ring.

1.2 Other terms like vermeil, may be used in addition but the phrase ‘gold plated’ and the word silver must appear within the description. For example 18ct gold plated vermeil silver ring.

1.3 The term ‘silver gilt’ may be used to describe gold plated silver, providing a specific gold fineness is not applied as part of the description. For example silver gilt ring.

1.4 The gold plated layer must be of fineness of at least 375 parts per thousand and should not exceed 2 microns in thickness.

2. Hallmarking of gold plated silver

2.1. Gold plated silver articles will be hallmarked as silver.

2.2 Gold plated silver articles are not covered by the ‘mixed metal’ amendment to the Hallmarking Act (2007).

3. Other marks

3.1 Other than the silver hallmark or a 925 stamp on underweight items, no other standalone gold fineness marks are permitted on gold plated silver articles, because they are potentially confusing and misleading to UK consumers. It is not permitted additionally to mark the article using marks such as 9k, 10k, 14k, 18k, nor can the article be marked using marks such as 375, 416, 585, 750. For the same reasons, ‘American’ style mixed marks are not permitted either, for example 925 1/20 14k. This is the same as it has always been for gold plated and rolled gold articles under the Hallmarking Act 1973 in the UK.

3.2. A gold fineness description is allowed if the article is described as silver and immediately followed by the words ‘gold plated’. For example an article with a silver hallmark (or 925 stamp on underweight articles) can be marked as follows ‘925 & 18ct gold plated’.

4. Underweight articles

4.1 This guidance applies to all gold plated silver articles below the 7.78 gram exemption weight for hallmarking, as well as for those requiring Hallmarking. The ‘exemption’ is an exemption from physical hallmarking itself, not from the requirements of every other part of the Hallmarking Act 1973.