How to sell gold in Zimbabwe

Gold mined in Zimbabwe may only be sold to a licensed buyer. In practice that means Fidelity Gold Refinery (FGR) — at one of its buying centres, or through an agent that holds an FGR gold-buying permit. Dealing in gold without authority is a crime that carries a mandatory prison sentence.^1,2

Small-scale miners now deliver most of the country’s gold: 77.7% of the gold delivered to Fidelity in August 2026.³

Who can legally buy your gold

• Fidelity buying centres. FGR buys at its Harare head office and at regional centres, many of them inside ZB Bank branches — among them Bulawayo, Gwanda, Kadoma, Kwekwe, Gweru, Mutare, Bindura, Chinhoyi, Masvingo, Zvishavane and Filabusi.^2,4
• Agents with an FGR gold-buying permit. These buy on Fidelity’s behalf. Custom millers are FGR buying agents under the regulations; elution plant owners have to apply for a permit.^5,6
• Licensed dealers. The law also allows sales to holders of a gold dealing licence, which is issued by the Finance Minister and costs far more than an agent permit. A buyer who has neither is not a legal buyer.^1,6

What you need to sell

Fidelity does not publish a single checklist, so call the buying centre before you travel. In practice, expect to need:

• Proof the gold is yours to sell: the claim’s registration certificate, or your tribute agreement if you work someone else’s claim. The law exempts registered claim holders and their tributors when they sell gold from their own claim.¹
• Your national ID.
• Up-to-date production returns. Claim holders must file them with the provincial mining office before the 10th of every month — they are how your deliveries are matched to your claim.^7,8
• Bank details. In March 2026 Fidelity asked small-scale miners to register local-currency accounts for the ZiG part of their payments. That rule is suspended, but having an account on file avoids delays if it returns.^9,10

Since 22 May 2026, foreign individuals, foreign-controlled companies and foreign beneficial owners may not hold small-scale gold titles; existing foreign operators must regularise by 1 January 2027 by scaling up into large-scale mining.¹¹

How Fidelity prices your gold

Fidelity’s buying price follows the international gold price.⁸ What you are paid a gram depends on how the purity of your gold is measured:

• SG (specific gravity) testing is done at the counter and paid on the spot. Your gold is placed in a purity band, and each band has a price.^2,12
• Fire assay is done at the Harare head office and measures purity precisely; you are paid when the results are in. Lots over 100 g get the top fire assay cash price with no sample deducted.^2,12
• Small lots of 5 to 9.99 g get the lowest price. For the fire assay transfer price, a sample of up to 10 g is deducted.¹²

On 16 September 2026 Fidelity was paying from US$125.75 a gram in the lowest SG band up to US$130.56 a gram for fire-assayed gold.¹²

How you are paid

• Small-scale miners: 100% in US dollars. The Reserve Bank’s 2026 monetary policy moved small-scale miners to 90% US dollars and 10% ZiG from March, but on 24 March 2026 its Monetary Policy Committee suspended the change temporarily, citing problems at Fidelity in putting it into effect and the fact that some miners have no bank account.^9,13,10
• Large-scale producers receive 70% of their export earnings in US dollars and 30% in ZiG.¹⁴
• Timing: SG sales are paid on the spot; fire assay sales once the assay is done.²

Royalties

Fidelity takes the royalty off each delivery, so the amount you receive is after royalty.¹⁵

• Small-scale miners: 2% was being deducted in 2025, and Reuters reported that small-scale miners keep a rate of up to 2% in 2026.^15,16
• Large-scale miners, from 1 January 2026: 3% when gold is at or below US$1,200 an ounce, 5% between US$1,200 and US$5,000, and 10% above US$5,000.^16,17

Always get a receipt showing the weight, the SG reading or assay result, the band, the price per gram and the royalty deducted.

Staying on the right side of the law

• The penalty for dealing in gold without authority is a mandatory prison sentence of five to ten years, and the gold is forfeited. Only where a court finds special circumstances can it impose up to five years or a fine instead.¹
• Enforcement has tightened. Since June 2025 a Gold Trade Enforcement Unit of Fidelity staff and police can inspect mines, records and computers.⁸
• Keep your paper trail — registration, production returns and receipts — because it is what shows where your gold came from.⁷
• Sell close to the mine. Carrying gold long distances is a risk in itself; Fidelity’s regional centres exist partly so miners do not have to.⁴

Common questions

Checked against the sources above on 17 September 2026. Prices update automatically from our gold price feed.