Last reviewed
Uganda's Mining and Minerals Act 2022: the sections that govern buying, refining and exporting gold
The short answer
Uganda's Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Act 25 of 2022) vests all minerals in the Government (s.9) and licenses every step from mining to export. For gold the operative sections are s.121, which prohibits processing, smelting, refining, trading in minerals or possessing commercial quantities without a licence; s.140, which allows buying or selling only by a licensed mineral dealer or a mineral-right holder selling its own output; s.149, which controls the disposal of minerals for sampling or assay; s.150, which requires an export permit for each export and lists the documents a permit does not replace; s.178, which makes the mining directorate the ICGLR competent authority; s.180, which leaves royalty rates to a statutory instrument; and ss.252, 256, 257 and 260, which set the offences. The Act fixes no purity figure: that comes from regulations under it, read on 2 November 2026 but not confirmed as in force. Section numbers are from the assented copy. This is general information, not legal advice.
Uganda Gold Report holds no licence, permit or right under any section of this Act, and does not yet buy, sell, refine or export gold.
How to read this page
Every section number below was read on 2 November 2026 in the assented copy of the Act, the text that carries the President's signature. An earlier text circulated online numbers the later sections one lower (for example s.139 for the dealing prohibition), and the Act is now also cited by the Auditor General as Cap. 159 of the revised laws, a text we have not read; a Ugandan lawyer should confirm the current numbering before any section is relied on. Official means we read it in the Act or an instrument. Reported means credible sources describe it but we have not seen the text. A proposal or notice is never presented here as law. For how the rules work in practice, including fees and the directorate's procedures, see Uganda gold regulations and the mineral dealer's licence; this page is the map of the Act itself.
The Act in one paragraph
The Act came into force on publication in the Gazette, except s.287(2)(s), on export levies, which is deemed to have come into force on 1 July 2021 (s.1). It repealed the Mining Act 2003, and regulations made under the old Act continue in force so far as they are consistent with the new one (s.289). It consolidates mining, mineral processing, dealing, export and royalty rules in one text, and it grades penalties in currency points, each worth UGX 20,000 (Schedule 1). Seven kinds of mineral right exist: prospecting, exploration, retention, large-scale, medium-scale, small-scale and artisanal mining licences (s.15). A dealer's licence, a refining licence and an export permit are not mineral rights; they are licences and permits under later Parts of the Act.
Section by section: the provisions that govern gold
Each row is a plain-English summary, labelled official because it was read in the assented copy; the words in quotation marks are the Act's own. The summaries shorten the text and are not a substitute for it.
| Section | What it provides | Why it matters to a gold buyer | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| s.9 Ownership | "The entire property in, and control of, all minerals" in, on or under any land or waters in Uganda is vested in the Government, whatever the land ownership | Gold in the ground belongs to the State until lawfully won under a mineral right; a landowner cannot sell it | Official, assented copy |
| s.10 Unauthorised activities | No prospecting, exploration, mining, processing, refining or other beneficiation without an authorisation, licence, lease, permit or approval. Penalty for an individual: a fine up to 50,000 currency points or five years, or both | A refiner or processor with no licence is operating unlawfully, whatever its name | Official, assented copy |
| s.104 Sale by artisanal miners | A holder of an artisanal mining licence "shall sell minerals won to a holder of a mineral dealer's licence" | Artisanal gold enters the market only through a licensed dealer; an offer of artisanal gold direct from the miner to a foreign buyer does not fit this section | Official, assented copy |
| s.121 General prohibition | "A person shall not process, smelt, refine, cut, blast, polish or trade in minerals or possess commercial quantities of minerals without a licence issued by the Minister under this Part." Commercial quantities are quantities sold or destined for sale to a third party for processing, refining or trading; personal or domestic use is excluded | Possession of gold for resale inside Uganda needs a licence under this Part, separate from the dealing rule in s.140 | Official, assented copy |
| s.122 Beneficiation licences | The Minister may license integrated projects to process, smelt, refine and trade minerals, or issue an independent licence for any one of those activities, including "trade in minerals" | Trading is a licensable activity in its own right under this Part | Official, assented copy |
| s.129 Refining licence rights | The holder may carry on refining, "acquire, dispose of or possess the minerals specified in the licence" and erect plant | A refiner may buy and sell the minerals its licence names; a licence class, not evidence of output | Official, assented copy |
| s.130(b) Refiner's purity duty | A refining licence holder shall "export or import minerals at purity levels prescribed by regulations" | The Act itself fixes no purity figure for gold; see the regulations table below | Official, assented copy |
| s.140 Buying and selling | "A person shall not buy or sell, either as principal or agent, any minerals or tailings unless he or she is a licensed mineral dealer" (1); a dealer may buy only from a person who acquired the minerals lawfully (2); a mineral-right holder may sell minerals it won without a dealer's licence (3) | The rule every seller, agent and intermediary must fit; covered in full on the mineral dealer's licence | Official, assented copy |
| s.141(4) Expiry | Every dealer's licence expires on 31 December of the year of grant | A licence shown as current must be for this year | Official, assented copy |
| s.142 Dealer's royalties | A dealer is liable for royalties on minerals bought, received or exported | Ask who paid the royalty on a lot, and for the proof | Official, assented copy |
| s.143 Dealer's register | A dealer keeps a register of every purchase and sale: nature and weight, price and date, the vendor and "his or her right to be in possession of the minerals", place of origin and purchaser, recorded within 24 hours, and produced to the Minister or to a police officer of Assistant Superintendent rank or above on investigation | A lot you are offered should appear in this register with a source; see gold chain of custody | Official, assented copy |
| s.146 Licensed premises | A dealer or goldsmith may not deal, store, buy, sell or receive minerals, as principal or agent, except at the premises in the licence. Penalty: up to 3,000 currency points or three years, or both | A deal done at a hotel, a mine gate or abroad sits outside this section on its face | Official, assented copy |
| s.147 Cancellation | On conviction of an offence under the Act, once appeal is exhausted, the Minister shall cancel the dealer's or goldsmith's licence | A conviction ends the licence | Official, assented copy |
| s.149 Disposal of minerals | "No minerals shall be disposed of in any manner whether for the purposes of sampling, assay, analysis or otherwise" except with the Minister's written consent, under the terms of the right or licence, or as otherwise permitted by the Act. Penalty: up to 10,000 currency points or five years, or both | A sample sent abroad for assay is a disposal under this section; it needs consent or a licence term, and in our reading an export permit too | Official, assented copy |
| s.150 Export | No export without an export permit (1); the Minister may grant a permit "to any person" on conditions (3); a permit does not exempt the holder from proof of fees and royalties, a certificate of origin where applicable, "certificate of analysis authenticated by the country of origin" and, for minerals not from Uganda, the origin country's export permit (4); exporting without a permit: up to 10,000 currency points or five years, or both (5); a mineral-right holder may not export products derived from minerals without the Minister's authorisation (6); quantities, volumes and purity levels of geological materials and non-commercial value are as prescribed by regulations (7) | The permit is per consignment and names the exporter. The documents in (4) are what documents and compliance sets out | Official, assented copy |
| s.151 Import | No import without an import permit; a customs declaration of type and quantity; before re-export the import permit is surrendered to customs for the Minister's approval (6). Penalty as for export | Gold mined outside Uganda needs an import permit and the origin country's export papers before it can lawfully leave again | Official, assented copy |
| s.178 ICGLR competent authority | The mining directorate is the competent authority for mine-site inspection and the issue of ICGLR certificates under the ICGLR (Implementation of the Pact) Act 2018; it must inspect each mine site before issuing the first ICGLR certificate for minerals from that site and yearly after that; "designated mineral" includes gold | The legal basis for the ICGLR certificate; the Act names the authority, not the procedure | Official, assented copy |
| s.180 Royalties | All minerals won in prospecting, exploration or mining are subject to royalty on gross value at the prevailing market price, "at such rates as shall be prescribed by the Minister ... by statutory instrument" (1); samples removed for testing are not liable unless they exceed a maximum value set by regulations (3) | The rate is not in the Act; see the unsettled list | Official, assented copy |
| ss.181 to 183, 187 Collection and waiver | The Uganda Revenue Authority collects royalties (181, 182); the Minister may, with Cabinet approval, waive royalty on minerals "from a particular deposit" (183); assessed royalty is due within thirty days (187) | A reported general waiver on gold has no instrument we could find; s.183 is deposit-specific | Official, assented copy |
| s.252(1) Unlicensed operations | Refining, smelting, processing, trading, storage or any other activity without a valid right, licence or permit: up to 50,000 currency points or seven years, or both | The penalty behind s.121 and s.140 | Official, assented copy |
| s.256 Counterfeiting | Counterfeiting or issuing a right, licence or permit without authority; possessing a fraudulently issued one; counterfeiting, altering or defacing "any stamp, mark, sign, mineral right, licence or permit"; knowingly receiving or keeping minerals acquired in contravention of the Act: up to 10,000 currency points or five years, or both | A buyer who knowingly receives unlawfully acquired gold is within (e) | Official, assented copy |
| s.257 False documents | Knowingly falsifying a certificate of origin: up to 5,000 currency points or three years, or both (1); false statements in applications, reports or returns, falsely claiming to hold a licence or permit, and salting samples "with the intention to cheat, deceive or defraud" (2); directors and officers liable where a company's offence is attributable to their consent, connivance or neglect (5) | The offence behind forged permits and certificates in the scams we describe | Official, assented copy |
| s.258(1) Exploitation and transport | Offences include supporting non-state armed groups through extraction, transport, trade or export of minerals (c), bribes "to conceal or disguise the origin of minerals" (f) and failing to pay taxes, fees and royalties on trade and export (g) | Uganda's own statement of the conflict-minerals risks a buyer must screen for | Official, assented copy |
| s.260 Sellers and record-keepers | A seller who fails to furnish the purchaser with a valid right, licence or permit or a valid certificate of origin, or who sells minerals with no certificate of origin behind them, commits an offence: up to 5,000 currency points or three years, or both (1); a licence holder who fails to record its transactions: the same (2) | The Act puts a duty on the seller to show the buyer its licence and the origin certificate | Official, assented copy |
| s.272 General penalty | Any contravention with no specific penalty: for an individual up to 5,000 currency points or seven years, or both; for a company up to 50,000 currency points | The default penalty | Official, assented copy |
| s.287 Regulations | The Minister may make regulations, including on valuation, sampling, weighing and testing of minerals (2)(f), the calculation of royalties (2)(g), fees (2)(r), and "fees, levies and charges payable for export of minerals" (2)(s) | The power behind the export levy and the forms; the purity power cited by the 2024 regulations is s.150(7) | Official, assented copy |
Movement permits. The text of the Act we read contains no section headed movement permit. The permit exists in the Mining and Minerals (Licensing) Regulations 2023, where Form 57 under regulation 86(2) applies for one, recording quantity, grade and route, and the directorate lists it as a requirement per consignment. It is a creature of the regulations, not of a numbered section of the Act.
Regulations and notices made under the Act
What is below the Act, with the label each item has earned. Dates are the dates of the instrument or report, and the reading date is 2 November 2026 unless stated.
| Instrument or notice | What it does | What we have read | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mining and Minerals (Licensing) Regulations 2023 | The application forms and procedures: Form 41 (refining licence, reg. 74(1)(a)), Form 46 (dealer's licence, reg. 79(1)), Form 52 (export permit, reg. 84(2)), Form 57 (movement permit, reg. 86(2)), Form 66 (dealer's monthly return, reg. 93(5)); the directorate also names Form 54 for an import permit | The forms, from the directorate's published copies. The instrument's full text was not found. Reported as No. 72 of 2023, in force 7 August 2023 and repealing the 2019 regulations | Forms official; number and date reported |
| Mining and Minerals (Export of Refined Gold) Regulations 2024, S.I. 30 of 2024 | Made 9 May 2024 under ss.150(7) and 287(2)(s); gazetted 24 May 2024. Regulation 2: a levy of USD 200 per kilogram on processed gold exported, paid by the exporter to the Uganda Revenue Authority at export. Regulation 3: "A person shall not export gold out of Uganda unless the gold is at a minimum purity level of 99.9% Au." No definition of processed gold, no exemption, no penalty | The copy of Uganda's 2024 export regulations we reviewed states a minimum of 99.9% gold for exports (S.I. 30 of 2024, regulation 3). We have not confirmed that it is currently in force | Official (text); force not confirmed |
| Mining (Licensing) Regulations 2019, S.I. 49 of 2019 | Made under the 2003 Act; Schedule 3 item 23(a) sets royalty on precious metals at 5% of gross value; reg. 62(2)(a) deems gold 95% fine absent proof | The text, in a scanned copy on the Uganda Trade Portal. Continues only so far as consistent with the 2022 Act (s.289(2)(b)), and reported replaced in 2023 | Official (text); current effect not confirmed |
| Ministry guidelines, 21 December 2024 | Reported to require proof of refining to 99.9%, proof of the USD 200 levy, and trading only between holders of a dealer's, mining or refining licence | Press report only; the guidelines were not found in the Gazette or on the ministry's site | Reported; unread |
| Ministry notice, 20 February 2026 | Reported to require export-permit applicants to present a valid mineral right or refining licence, Form 52, a certificate of origin, an authenticated certificate of analysis and proof of 99.9% purity, and to register buyers and sellers on the Mining Cadastre | Press report only; the notice was not found. It conflicts with the directorate's 2024 procedures, which list a dealer's licence | Reported; unread |
| Proposed Mineral Market and Buying Centre Regulations, May 2026 | Would confine trade to licensed operators and recognised markets and require refining to 99.9% before export | Press report of a stakeholder consultation. Whether they have since been made is not established | Reported as proposed; not law |
| ICGLR (Implementation of the Pact) Regulations 2023 | The regulations s.178 refers to, governing the ICGLR certificate | Title only, from a ministry newsletter; text not found | Title official; content unread |
What is unsettled
Each item is a question for Ugandan counsel. We state our reading where we have one and do not publish it as the law.
- Can a dealer's licence alone support an export permit? Section 150(3) says the Minister may grant a permit to any person; the directorate's 2024 procedures list a dealer's licence or mineral right; the February 2026 notice is reported to name a mineral right or refining licence instead. Which sellers can lawfully export turns on the answer. Counsel question.
- Is S.I. 30 of 2024 in force and validly made? No amendment or revocation was found, and the Auditor General's report for the year to December 2025 refers to regulations prescribing purity levels for gold. The instrument cites s.150(7), which speaks of geological materials and non-commercial value, and s.287(2)(s), which covers export levies; s.130(b) is not cited. We publish no view on validity. Counsel question.
- Can gold doré be exported? Regulation 3 sets 99.9% with no exception, and doré is normally well below it. We found no text allowing its export and no exemption, which is not proof that none exists. Counsel question.
- What royalty rate applies to gold? Section 180(1) leaves the rate to a statutory instrument; the last rate read in an official text is 5% under the 2019 regulations, and the Uganda EITI report for 2023/24 still gives 5%. A waiver on Ugandan-mined gold has been reported since December 2024, with no instrument found; s.183 allows waivers for a particular deposit, not a mineral in general. Counsel question.
- Can a foreign buyer take title to gold inside Uganda? Section 140(1) applies to "a person" with no exception for foreigners; s.121(1) adds possession of commercial quantities without a licence; s.146 confines a dealer's transactions to its licensed premises. No official text addresses a foreign buyer taking title in Uganda, or a sale concluded abroad. See how buying gold from Uganda works. Counsel question.
- Has the numbering changed in Cap. 159? The revised-laws citation has not been read. Counsel question.
- Is an ICGLR certificate mandatory for a gold export? Section 150(4)(b) says "certificate of origin, where applicable", and the certificate is not on the directorate's export-permit list. Counsel question.
What the Act means for a buyer, in five lines
- Your seller must be a licensed dealer, a refining licence holder or a mineral-right holder selling its own output (ss.121, 129, 140), and must show you that licence and a certificate of origin (s.260).
- Each consignment needs its own export permit, and the permit does not replace the royalty proof, the certificate of origin or the authenticated certificate of analysis (s.150(4)).
- The Act sets no purity figure; the regulations we read set 99.9% and a USD 200 per kilogram levy, and their force is unconfirmed.
- Samples are minerals too: taking one out of Uganda for assay needs consent or a licence term (s.149) and, in our reading, a permit.
- Receiving gold you know was unlawfully acquired is an offence for the receiver (s.256(e)), so the checks on the five due-diligence checks protect you, not only the seller.
Where Uganda Gold Report stands
Uganda Gold Report is developing documented gold-sourcing routes and welcomes enquiries from qualified international buyers. Product availability, specifications, seller authority and export eligibility are subject to independent verification and applicable regulatory approvals.
We hold no licence, permit or mineral right under any section of this Act, we have paid no royalty or levy because we have exported nothing, and we cannot quote today. Any route we build will fit the sections above, and we will show the buyer the licence and permit behind it. If you have a genuine requirement, send us your form, fineness, quantity and destination, and we will reply with what can and cannot be quoted at this stage. The official sources behind the licence checks are on how to check a Ugandan gold supplier.
What this page cannot tell you
This page summarises the assented copy of the Act as read through an OCR text on 2 November 2026, and the instruments under it that we could read. It is not legal advice. We have not read the Act as Cap. 159 of the revised laws, the full Mining and Minerals (Licensing) Regulations 2023, the ICGLR Regulations 2023, the December 2024 guidelines, the February 2026 notice or any royalty instrument under s.180(1), and we say so where it matters. Penalties are stated as maxima in currency points; UGX figures depend on Schedule 1 remaining at UGX 20,000 a point. Nothing here says who is eligible for a licence or whether a foreign-owned company can hold one.
Sources and evidence for this page
Evidence for this page
Each statement is labelled by the strength of its evidence and dated. How we label evidence.
| Statement | Evidence | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commencement on Gazette publication, except s.287(2)(s) deemed in force 1 July 2021 (s.1); all minerals vested in the Government (s.9(1)); prohibition of prospecting, exploration, mining, processing, refining or other beneficiation without authorisation, penalty for an individual up to 50,000 currency points or five years or both (s.10); seven types of mineral right (s.15); artisanal licence holder shall sell minerals won to a licensed dealer (s.104). | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.1, 9, 10, 15 and 104, read in the project OCR of the assented copy (research/verification/tmp/mining_act_2022.txt, SHA-256 e3e52c76...f3d078) | |
| s.121(1): "A person shall not process, smelt, refine, cut, blast, polish or trade in minerals or possess commercial quantities of minerals without a licence issued by the Minister under this Part"; (2) commercial quantities defined as quantities sold or destined for sale to a third party for processing, smelting, refining, cutting, blasting, polishing or trading; (3) personal or domestic use excluded. s.122(2): the Minister may issue an independent licence for processing, smelting, refining, cutting, blasting, polishing or trade in minerals. | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.121 and 122 | |
| s.129: a refining licence holder may carry on refining, "acquire, dispose of or possess the minerals specified in the licence" and erect plant. s.130(b): the holder shall "export or import minerals at purity levels prescribed by regulations". | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.129 and 130 | |
| s.140(1): "A person shall not buy or sell, either as principal or agent, any minerals or tailings unless he or she is a licensed mineral dealer under this Act"; (2) a dealer may only buy from a person who acquired the minerals lawfully; (3) a mineral-right holder may sell minerals acquired under the Act without a dealer's licence. s.141(4): every dealer's licence expires on 31 December of the year of grant. s.142: dealer liable for royalties on minerals bought, received or exported. s.143(1): register of purchases and sales with nature and weight, price and date, vendor and "his or her right to be in possession of the minerals", place of origin, purchaser; recorded within 24 hours; produced to the Minister or an authorised officer, and to a police officer not below Assistant Superintendent during an investigation. | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.140 to 143 | |
| s.146(1): a licensed dealer or goldsmith shall not deal outside the terms of the licence, store minerals elsewhere than the licensed premises, or buy, sell, deal in or receive minerals as principal or agent elsewhere than the licensed premises; (2) penalty up to 3,000 currency points or three years or both. s.147: the Minister shall cancel the licence on conviction once appeal is exhausted. s.149(1): no minerals shall be disposed of "whether for the purposes of sampling, assay, analysis or otherwise" except with the Minister's written consent, under the terms of the right or licence, or as otherwise permitted by the Act; (2) penalty up to 10,000 currency points or five years or both. | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.146, 147 and 149 | |
| s.150: (1) no export of minerals without an export permit; (3) the Minister may grant a permit "to any person" on conditions; (4) a permit does not exempt the holder from proof of fees and royalties where applicable, certificate of origin where applicable, "certificate of analysis authenticated by the country of origin" and, for minerals not from Uganda, the origin country's export permit or related documents; (5) export in contravention: up to 10,000 currency points or five years or both; (6) a mineral-right holder shall not export products derived from minerals without the Minister's authorisation; (7) quantities, volumes and purity levels of geological materials and non-commercial value as prescribed by regulations. s.151: import permit required; customs declaration; (6) import permit surrendered to customs before re-export for the Minister's approval; (7) penalty up to 10,000 currency points or five years or both. | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.150 and 151 | |
| s.178: the Directorate is the competent authority for mine-site inspection and the issue of ICGLR certificates under the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (Implementation of the Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region) Act 2018; it maintains a database of mine sites producing designated minerals (3); it physically inspects each mine site before issuing the first ICGLR Certificate for minerals from that site and at least yearly after (5); "designated mineral" includes gold, cassiterite, coltan and wolframite (6). | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, s.178 | |
| s.180(1): royalties on the gross value of minerals produced at the prevailing market price "at such rates as shall be prescribed by the Minister in collaboration with the Minister responsible for finance by statutory instrument"; (3) samples removed for testing not liable to royalty unless exceeding a maximum value stipulated by regulations. s.181(2): URA collects royalties; s.182(1): fees, charges and royalties paid to URA. s.183: the Minister may, with Cabinet approval, waive royalty on any mineral "from a particular deposit". s.187(1): assessed royalty due within thirty days. | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.180 to 183 and 187 | |
| s.252(1): prospecting, mining or exploration without a valid right, licence or permit, or "refining, smelting, processing, trading, storage or any other activity" without one, or aiding illegal operators: up to 50,000 currency points or seven years or both. s.256: counterfeiting or issuing without authority any right, licence or permit; possessing a fraudulently issued one; false information in an application; counterfeiting, altering, obliterating or defacing "any stamp, mark, sign, mineral right, licence or permit"; knowingly receiving or keeping minerals acquired in contravention of the Act: up to 10,000 currency points or five years or both. s.257(1): knowingly falsifying a certificate of origin: up to 5,000 currency points or three years or both; (2) false statements in applications, reports or returns, false representation of holding a licence or permit, and adulterating samples with intent to cheat; (5) directors and officers liable for a body corporate's offence committed with their consent, connivance or neglect. s.258(1)(c), (f), (g): supporting non-state armed groups through extraction, transport, trade, handling or export; bribes to conceal or disguise origin or misrepresent taxes, fees and royalties; failing to pay taxes, fees and royalties. s.260(1): a seller who fails to furnish the purchaser with a valid right, licence or permit or a valid certificate of origin, or who sells minerals with no certificate of origin behind them (the Act's own phrase is paraphrased here): up to 5,000 currency points or three years or both; (2) a licence holder failing to record transactions: the same. s.272: general penalty, individual up to 5,000 currency points or seven years or both, body corporate up to 50,000 currency points. The arrangement of sections in the OCR lists the general penalty as 270; the section text reads 272. | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.252, 256, 257, 258, 260 and 272 | |
| s.287(1): the Minister may make regulations; (2)(f) valuation, sampling, weighing and testing of minerals; (g) calculation and payment of royalties; (r) fees payable under the Act; (s) "fees, levies and charges payable for export of minerals". s.289(1): the Mining Act 2003 is repealed; (2)(b) regulations under it continue in force so far as consistent with the Act. Schedule 1: "A currency point is equivalent to twenty thousand shillings." | Official | Mining and Minerals Act 2022 (Uganda), assented copy, ss.287, 289 and Schedule 1 | |
| Two circulated texts of the Act number the later sections differently; the assented copy, carrying the presidential assent page, numbers the dealing prohibition s.140(1), export s.150 and import s.151, one higher than the earlier text from about s.135 onward. The Auditor General's report for the year to December 2025 cites the Act as Cap. 159 and uses s.140(1), s.130(b), s.180(4) and s.187(1), matching the assented copy; the revised-laws text has not been read. | Verified | Uganda Gold Report research notes: research/legal/05 (13 Sep 2026) and research/legal/13 section 7 (31 Oct 2026) | |
| Regulation 3 states: "A person shall not export gold out of Uganda unless the gold is at a minimum purity level of 99.9% Au." Regulation 2 states a levy on processed gold to be exported of USD 200 per kilogram, paid by the exporter to the Uganda Revenue Authority at the time of export. Made 9 May 2024 under ss.150(7) and 287(2)(s); Statutory Instruments Supplement No. 15 of 24 May 2024. No definition of processed gold, no exemption, no penalty. Current force not confirmed. | Official | Mining and Minerals (Export of Refined Gold) Regulations 2024, S.I. 30 of 2024, regulations 2 and 3; scanned copy on the mining directorate (DGSM) website, read 31 Oct 2026 | |
| Mining and Minerals (Licensing) Regulations 2023 forms, from the directorate's published copies: Form 41 refining licence (reg. 74(1)(a)); Form 46 dealer's licence (reg. 79(1)); Form 52 export permit (reg. 84(2)); Form 57 movement permit (reg. 86(2)), recording quantity, grade and route; Form 66 dealer's monthly return (reg. 93(5)). The directorate names Form 54 for an import permit. The full instrument was not found; its number (No. 72 of 2023), commencement (7 Aug 2023) and repeal of the 2019 regulations are reported in a law-firm guide. | Official | Mining and Minerals (Licensing) Regulations 2023, forms as carried on the DGSM Mineral Licensing Procedures 2024 and on the regulation hub and mineral dealer's licence guide; number and date reported (LexAfrica guide, per research/legal/13 section 3) | |
| Export permit requirements per consignment listed by the directorate: valid mineral dealer's licence or mineral right; Form 52; origin-country documents for non-Ugandan minerals; proof of royalty where applicable. Movement permit: valid licence or right, Form 57, proof of royalty payment. | Official | DGSM, Mineral Licensing Procedures as at 2024, as carried on the regulation hub | |
| Mining (Licensing) Regulations 2019, S.I. 49 of 2019, Schedule 3 item 23(a): royalty "on precious metals; five (5%) per centum of the gross value", payable by holders of mineral rights or mineral dealers; reg. 62(2)(a): gold deemed 95% fine in the absence of proof. The UGEITI report for FY2023/24 (Aug 2026), Annex 19, still gives 5% of gross value for precious metals, citing the 2019 schedule. | Official | S.I. 49 of 2019 (scanned copy, Uganda Trade Portal) and UGEITI Report FY2023/24, Annex 19, as read for research/legal/13 section 4 | |
| Ministry guidelines of 21 Dec 2024 reported to require proof that exported gold is refined to 99.9%, proof of the USD 200 per kilogram levy through URA, and trading only between holders of a dealer's, mining or refining licence; the same paper reported royalties waived on gold produced in Uganda. The guidelines themselves were not found. | Reported | The Independent (Uganda), 21 Dec 2024 | |
| A ministry notice of 20 Feb 2026 is reported to require export-permit applicants to present a valid mineral right or refining licence, Form 52, a certificate of origin, an authenticated certificate of analysis and proof of refining to 99.9%, and to register buyers and sellers on the Mining Cadastre. The notice itself has not been read; it conflicts with DGSM's 2024 list, which includes a dealer's licence. | Reported | Eagle Online, 20 Feb 2026, reporting the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development | |
| Proposed Mineral Market and Buying Centre Regulations were under stakeholder consultation in May 2026; they would require licensed operators and markets, and refining to 99.9% before gold export. Whether they have since been made is not established. | Reported | Nile Post via AllAfrica, 18 May 2026 | |
| The Auditor General's report for the audit year to 31 Dec 2025 (para. 2.1.3.3) says regulations prescribing purity levels exist for gold; the ministry newsletter for Jul to Sep 2024 lists S.I. 30 of 2024 and names the ICGLR (Implementation of the Pact) (Prevention of illegal Exploitation and Illicit Trade in designated Minerals) Regulations 2023, whose text was not found; no amendment or revocation of S.I. 30 was found. | Verified | Office of the Auditor General, consolidated report for 2025; MEMD newsletter 2024; as read for research/legal/13 sections 1 and 8 | |
| Our reading: a physical gold sample leaving Uganda is a disposal under s.149 and an export under s.150(1), needing consent or a licence term and an export permit held by a licensed exporter. Not confirmed with the directorate or counsel. | Subject to verification | Uganda Gold Report reading of the Mining and Minerals Act 2022, ss.149, 150(1) and 180(3); carried on /buyer-compliance and /gold/gold-assay |