No. There are certain weight exemptions. These are below 1.0g for gold, below 7.78g for silver and below 0.5g for platinum. There are other exemptions to the Hallmarking Act - please refer to the Hallmarking Guidance Notes.

It is against the law in the course of a trade or business to sell or describe precious metal articles in the UK that are un-hallmarked and above the weight exemptions. Trading Standards Officers have the power to seize any items that do not comply with the 1973 Hallmarking Act which can lead to prosecution and a fine of up to £5,000 per article.

The choice is yours but you should be aware that large struck marks will probably need to be set back. If you are sending items for laser marking it is preferable that they are sent in their pre-polished stage or finished.

Yes. You can apply your sponsor's mark to any items that you make or sell that do not already have a hallmark.

Although it is within our rights to destroy items that do not reach standard we very rarely do so. With the variety of different finenesses available we can usually hallmark the item at a lower standard. If any significant issues arise we would contact the customer before proceeding further.

Yes you can, just as you would with any other items.

A sponsor's mark is a compulsory component of the hallmark and comprises the initials of the sponsor's personal or company name surrounded by a distinguishable shield design usually provided by the Assay Office. All sponsors' marks are individual and once allocated will never be re-issued to anyone else. You cannot use your company logo as a sponsor's mark, however we can apply your company logo for you, as a non-compulsory optional extra, at the time of hallmarking with our hi-tech lasers. Please contact us for further information.

Many white gold products are rhodium plated to give a whiter finish and over a period of time the rhodium plate will begin to wear off and where the gold underneath is not pure white the contrast between the two metals makes the gold look yellower. Your jeweller should be able to re-plate your ring to return it to its original colouring.

A Convention Hallmark is a type of mark applied by a signatory country of the International Convention on Hallmarks. It comprises a sponsor's mark, the common control mark, the fineness mark and the Assay Office mark. The Convention mark is recognised by all member countries in the International Convention and items do not have to be re-hallmarked in the UK. Please see our download centre for further information on examples of marks and member countries.

3D laser hallmarks have very similar wear characteristic to struck marks and have good wear durability.

Under normal circumstances, it is left to the discretion of the Assay Office to place the hallmark as appropriate according to the product type, taking into account construction and the stage of manufacture when submitted. Assay Office London has literally hundreds of years' knowledge in this area, with in-house tool making facilities if required. However, if you have a specific size or place you want the mark placed we suggest that use a non-permanent marker to mark the position or discuss your requirements with a Marking Supervisor on or before submission. Please bear in mind that struck marks need to be supported with a tool in some way so it is not always possible to mark in the desired position.

The date letter and the traditional fineness marks are no longer compulsory components of the hallmark. However, at Assay Office London we believe that the date letter is a very important component of the hallmark as it is the easiest way to date an item and research has shown that most of our customers still want to see the traditional fineness mark on the hallmark. Unlike some of the other UK assay offices, we do not charge any extra to apply the two non-compulsory marks. Those only wanting the compulsory marks applied should indicate this on the hallnote.

Providing that no one is already registered at London with the same sponsor's mark then punches from other Assay Offices can be transferred and registered with us.

Avoid using excessive packaging and items individually wrapped in tissue or sealed in plastic bags. Ideally send items rolled in tissue and use ring trays for rings, earrings, pendants, etc. Bangles should be placed in cardboard rolls. If you need further guidance please consult one our Hallmarking Supervisors before submitting to the Assay Office.

We do remove samples from articles in some circumstances, however we are increasingly using non-destructive X-ray fluorescence technology as a sampling technique.

No, each metal and each standard needs to be submitted with its own separate hallnote.