Federal government tightens Toshakhana rules on official gifts

The federal government has tightened the rules on gifts received by public office holders. Under the Toshakhana (Management and Regulation) Rules, 2026, the earlier option of keeping gifts worth up to $300 after paying their assessed market value has been closed.

The rules set a new framework for receiving, valuing, recording and disposing of gifts. Gifts that cannot be declined for diplomatic or cultural reasons must be deposited in the Toshakhana, the state repository for official gifts. Gifts eligible for disposal will generally be sold in open public auctions.

Antiques and items of historical or cultural importance are excluded from auction. High-value gifts and those considered diplomatically or internationally sensitive may also be exempted. These decisions rest with a committee headed by the cabinet secretary, with senior representatives of the Finance, Foreign Affairs, Law and Culture divisions. Exemption from auction does not by itself let the original recipient keep a gift for personal use.

The 2023 procedure also restricted private retention of gifts above $300, making them state property, and excluded antiques and items of intrinsic historical value from the retention concession. It provided for periodic public auctions of gifts unsuitable for retention, donation or display.

On valuation, the Federal Board of Revenue and an independent private-sector evaluator will each assess a gift's market value. If their figures differ by more than 25 per cent, a third evaluator will be appointed. A valuation older than three months cannot be used to set the reserve price, which must not be lower than the assessed market value.

The rules require open auctions, bar public office holders and their family members from bidding, and provide for live media coverage. Details of gifts, including assessed values, reserve prices and final auction prices, will be published on an online portal updated monthly. The names and countries of the dignitaries who gave the gifts will not be disclosed there.

Annual third-party audits of gifts received and disposed of through the Toshakhana are also required. Auction revenue will go into a separate account for primary education for girls in the country's least-developed areas.

A source in the bureaucracy told The News that the key question is not whether the rules allow officials to retain expensive gifts, since they set up no such general entitlement. The question, the source said, is how consistently the exemptions are applied and how transparently gifts kept outside auction are accounted for.