Uzbekistan tightens customs control amid spike in jewelry smuggling attempts

In one incident, a passenger arriving from Bangkok concealed 121 grams of jewelry – worth over 180 million UZS – inside sweets. He was detained while attempting to smuggle the items into the country.

In another case, a citizen of a neighboring country traveling on a Tashkent–Istanbul flight tried to smuggle 370 grams of jewelry valued at 350 million UZS.

Additionally, a passenger arriving from Baku was found carrying diamond-studded jewelry weighing a total of 74 grams, with an estimated value of around 130 million UZS. The individual had not declared the items upon crossing the border.

Customs inspections are currently underway in connection with all of the above cases.

It is reported that, in total, 252 cases of customs law violations have been recorded since the beginning of the year. As a result, authorities prevented the illegal import and covert sale of nearly 40 kilograms of jewelry, with a total estimated value of 24.3 billion UZS.

As a reminder, beginning July 20 of this year, individuals will be allowed to import jewelry for personal use without paying customs duties, within the following limits:

• Up to $1,000 via air transport
• Up to $500 via rail or river transport
• Up to $300 via road or pedestrian checkpoints

The following limits apply to jewelry exports without a customs declaration:

• Up to 200 grams of silver jewelry
• Up to 65 grams of gold or other precious items

Amounts exceeding these limits must be declared through a passenger customs declaration.