Ghana mandates local gold refining before export from Sept 1

The directive, contained in a notice dated August 24, 2026, applies to all SFAs and approved Offtakers of SFAs and forms part of GoldBod’s mandate to regulate the purchase, sale, refining, value addition and export of gold in Ghana.

GoldBod said the directive is issued pursuant to the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1140) and must be read together with its Guidelines for the Onboarding of Offtakers and the Conduct of Transactions with Offtakers issued on July 13, 2026.

Under the new requirement, “no gold doré shall be exported in its unrefined state”.

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GoldBod said every offtake agreement or commercial arrangement between an SFA and an approved Offtaker must expressly provide for the mandatory refining of gold doré in Ghana before export.

It added that “no request for the export of gold doré shall be approved by the GoldBod unless the gold has first been refined locally”.

The directive also requires all refining to be carried out at a refinery approved or designated by GoldBod in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements.

“GoldBod reserves the right to determine the refinery at which any gold shall be refined and to issue additional operational directives governing the refining process,” the notice stated.

On the cost of refining, GoldBod said the SFA or approved Offtaker will bear the expense based on their commercial arrangements. The applicable refining charges must be paid or settled before the refined gold is exported.

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GoldBod has also given SFAs until August 31, 2026 to amend all existing offtake agreements and related commercial arrangements with approved Offtakers to incorporate the mandatory local refining requirement.

The Board said it may request evidence of the amendments at any time.

From September 1, GoldBod will only process export requests after confirming that the gold has been refined in Ghana, applicable refining charges have been settled and all assay, regulatory and export requirements have been met.

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SFAs have been warned that failure to comply with the directive will constitute a breach of their licence conditions.

According to GoldBod, violations may result in regulatory action, including the refusal or suspension of export approvals, suspension or revocation of licences, administrative sanctions and other enforcement measures permitted under the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1140).