The change, set to take effect later in 2025, marks a clear move to distinguish between natural and lab-grown diamonds (LGDs) in the global market. LGDs submitted to GIA will now be classified using simplified descriptors such as ‘premium’ or ‘standard’
Mumbai: The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has announced that it will no longer apply its 4Cs grading system—cut, colour, clarity and carat weight—to laboratory-grown diamonds. The change, set to take effect later in 2025, marks a clear move to distinguish between natural and lab-grown diamonds in the global market.
Lab-grown diamonds submitted to GIA will now be classified using simplified descriptors such as ‘premium’ or ‘standard’. Stones not meeting these benchmarks may not receive a quality grade at all. The decision is intended to avoid confusion among consumers and to reflect the differences between the two categories of diamonds.
Commenting on the development, Amit Pratihari, Managing Director, De Beers India, said,“The GIA’s decision to grade lab-grown substitutes separately is a timely and important move that brings much-needed clarity to consumers… The recent closure of Lightbox’s direct-to-consumer retail operations only re-affirms what we’re seeing globally: that consumer demand continues to gravitate toward natural diamonds when it comes to marking life’s most meaningful moments.”
From a gemological perspective, industry experts have long pointed out the need to avoid applying identical grading systems to products with differing origins.Henry Smith, Head of Sales at the Institute of Diamonds, De Beers Group, observed that GIA’s adoption of a distinct grading framework for LGDs is a significant advancement in safeguarding the gemological integrity of the diamond industry. “GIA’s move supports a more accurate and transparent classification system that aligns with the scientific and commercial realities of the two products,” Smith stated.
Meanwhile,Kirit Bhansali, Chairman of the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), welcomed the decision, saying, “GIA’s decision to use descriptive terms instead of the famous 4Cs grading for laboratory-grown diamonds marks an important evolution in diamond classification. This change will help eliminate confusion by clearly distinguishing how lab-grown diamonds are assessed, separate from the standards developed for natural diamonds… allowing both categories to grow with greater transparency, integrity and consumer confidence.”
The new policy from GIA signals a shift that other global gemological labs may soon adopt to support separation of lab-grown and natural diamonds in the jewellery trade.
GIA India Laboratory Private Limited (‘GIA India’), a subsidiary of the Gemological Institute of America, Inc., has been operating in India since 2008. Based in Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex near the Bharat Diamond Bourse, it runs a state-of-the-art grading facility and offers educational programmes in gemology and jewellery design to support the Indian gem and jewellery industry.
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