GIA unveils refined coloured-stone reports, expands on-site services at Hong Kong 2026

The Gemological Institute of America has published a detailed Laboratory-Grown Diamond Services fee schedule for Hong Kong that takes effect January 1, 2026, while signalling a renewed emphasis on coloured gemstones through updated identification and origin reports. "With heightened interest in coloured gemstones across markets, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) is advancing its reports and services to better serve both the trade and the public. GIA recently updated its coloured stone identification and origin reports, unveiling refined versions on Janu" is reproduced verbatim from GIA’s announcement.

The Hong Kong fee extract lists percentage-based add-ons that will reshape report pricing: Color or Clarity is set at 50% of the applicable report fee; Polish, Symmetry, Measurement, and Fluorescence are 25% of the applicable report fee; AGS Ideal® Report is 75% of the applicable report fee; and an ASET® Map Letter accompanying the original report is 50% of the applicable report fee. Standalone service lines and several ambiguous entries appear in the extract and are preserved exactly as published, including a repeated standalone "50% of applicable report fee."

Itemized amounts in the extract include resubmission for add-on service at HK$80, a per item handling fee of HK$8, and a digital-image add-on to a GIA report priced at HK$390. A "Letter accompanying GIA report" is listed at HK$665. Options for AGS Ideal® Report formats are noted with a Custom Logo Inscription addl 115 and Printed Report addl 40, together with the instruction "Add 100% of total service" and a referral to contact a Client Services Representative for details.

Weight-based pricing lines appear in the fee text as follows: for 0.15 to 0.99 carats the entries read HK$115 and HK$95; 1.00 to 1.49 reads 150 and 115; 1.50 to 1.99 reads 155 and 125; 2.00 to 2.99 reads 235 and 185; 3.00 to 3.99 reads 330 and 255; 4.00 to 4.99 reads 435 and 345; and a notation for 5.00 and above appears adjacent to the letter fee HK$665. The extract also contains a standalone HK$1,950 and several combined short lines such as "Fee HK$115 115 40 25 Rejection Fee Unmarked Parcel Paper Fee, per stone Minimum Fee, per stone submission" which remain in the published text.

GIA’s Laboratory-Grown Diamond Quality Assessment is described in the schedule as providing an overall quality evaluation of loose laboratory-grown diamonds, classifying each diamond as either Premium or Standard. The service applies to colorless to near-colorless laboratory-grown diamonds weighing 0.15 carats or more; each assessed diamond’s girdle is laser inscribed with the term "Laboratory-Grown" and the GIA quality assessment number. Pricing for this service is "determined by multiplying the total carat weight by the cost per carat" and a minimum fee applies to each stone submission, with submission instructions truncated in the extract.

The Hong Kong extract also addresses shipping and returns: shipping instructions are available on GIA’s website, return shipping fees will apply if the client does not make prior arrangements, and if GIA arranges shipping the client will be charged accordingly; the published line advising how to contact GIA and local representation is truncated. Taken together, the effective January 1, 2026 fee schedule and the institute’s refreshed approach to coloured-stone reporting point to a technical recalibration as GIA adapts paperwork, pricing, and on-site logistics to rising market interest in colour.