Day: February 14, 2024

The draft law supplementing Law no. 2005-17 of March 1, 2005 on precious metals will make it possible to provide reliable estimates of the real value of jewellery seized by the tax and customs authorities, as well as items belonging to the State (mortgaged or confiscated...), with a view to selling them as jewellery (and not in the form of bars). The aim is to generate additional revenue for the state budget," Finance Minister Sihem Boughdiri Nemsia said on Wednesday during a plenary session of the ARP devoted to examining the bill. The minister explained that the value of gold articles sold by the Tunisian customs since 2020 amounts to approximately TND 75.3 million. She pointed out that the draft law submitted to the ARP aims to fill the legal vacuum created by Law No. 17, which does not allow for the transfer of confiscated precious metals except in the form of bars. This necessarily entails the melting of these objects, resulting in a loss of their value, their quality or the precious stones used to se t them. Nemsia also said that the Central Bank of Tunisia's gold stock currently stands at around 6.84 tonnes. "All the jewellery and valuables belonging to the Tunisian beys are safely deposited in the Tunisian treasury. The same applies to the jewellery belonging to the family of deposed President Ben Ali," the minister pointed out, adding that these items are regularly inventoried under judicial supervision. On another level, the Minister announced that an office of guarantee would be set up in Djerba to reduce pressure on the one in Sfax, and to bring this service closer to jewellers in southern Tunisia, particularly those operating in the governorates of Médenine, Tataouine, Gabès and Kébili. The Bureau of Guarantee is the sole guarantor of the authenticity of precious jewellery, particularly gold. Tunisia has 3 offices of guarantee authorised to inspect precious jewellery throughout the country, namely the Greater Tunis office (whose services are available to professionals in the governorates of Ar iana, Ben Arous, Manouba, Bizerte, Nabeul, Zaghouan, Beja, Jendouba, Kef, Siliana and Kasserine), the Sousse Office (Monastir, Mahdia and Kairouan) and the Sfax Office (Sidi Bouzid, Gafsa, Tozeur, Médenine, Tataouine, Gabès and Kébili). Nemsia also pointed out that the margin of error in grading gold at offices of guarantee does not exceed 0.3%, either by using the touchstone or by melting part of the jewel. She indicated that Tunisia would soon be opting to use the laser-based method in the gold grading process, following the example of several countries around the world. At the end of the plenary session, MPs adopted the bill supplementing Law No. 17 of 2005 on precious metals. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse