The junta is reportedly considering raising its annual licensing fees for gem retailers by sixfold in early 2024.
The shift would apply to several types of businesses in the gem trade, according to the junta-controlled Myanmar Gems Enterprise (MGE), which informed sellers on September 15 that their yearly licensing fees—which had remained unchanged for a decade—would be adjusted to fit the current times.
At the time of reporting, the cost of obtaining a licence to sell polished gems and jewellery was 50,000 kyat, or less than US$24. The proposed fee next year would raise this to 300,000 kyat, or nearly $143.
The same licence for selling gem-laden items, such as sculptures, would be changed from 30,000 kyat ($14) to 200,000 ($95), and that required for those selling rough gem products would be increased from 30,000 to 150,000 kyat ($71).
Such licences are only issued in Naypyitaw, Yangon, Mandalay and Mogok in Mandalay Region, Mong Hsu in Shan State and Hpakant and Myitkyina in Kachin State.
Since the military coup in February 2021, jewellers have struggled amid a sluggish gem market, with many leaving the industry. A gem trader from Mandalay speculated to Myanmar Now that the junta, which is also looking for income in a failing economy, identified the licensing fees as a potential source of financial gain.
“We are currently facing significant difficulties,” she explained. “It seems that the increased licence fee is a way for [the military] to generate more revenue from the gem industry. They take whatever they can.”
In July, the junta warned those in the jewellery business to obtain the necessary licence or face fines and up to three years in prison for operating illegally.
A gem trader from Naypyitaw told Myanmar Now that such licences were granted freely in the past, but regulations around them have since been tightened.
The total number of licences issued by the MGE is not known. The entity has been subjected to sanctions imposed by the United States, United Kingdom and European Union since 2021.
According to a 2021 report by the UK-based advocacy and research group Global Witness, the state-owned Myanmar gems industry earns $346m and $415m annually. If illegal mining is also taken into account, the annual average earning may be up to $2b.
Rights activists have advocated for a ban on the international trade of Myanmar gems, as well as oil and gas, due to the junta’s monopoly on the country’s natural resources and their use of revenue to build the military’s capacity amid continued offensives against the anti-coup resistance.
On September 17, the publicly mandated National Unity Government (NUG) called for the dissolution of the Myanmar Gems and Jewellery Entrepreneurs Association, comprised of prominent industry traders. The association is seen as endorsing and providing financial support to the military council, the NUG said.
