How Labs Test Jade: Certificates, Appraisals and What a Report Proves

Jade testing is how a gemological laboratory confirms what a piece of jade is and whether it has been treated, and the report it issues is the only document a buyer is likely to be handed that can tell Type A jadeite from Type B. Checks at home stop short of that, because none of them reliably detects the polymer used to treat jadeite, which is why every piece of jade jewelry for sale in our shop is tested by a lab before it's listed.

What is the difference between a jade certificate, a lab report and an appraisal?

Most of what sellers call a jade certificate is a lab report: a document from a gemological laboratory that says what the stone is and whether it has been treated. An appraisal is something else, an opinion of what the piece is worth, written for insurance, an estate or a sale. A "certificate of authenticity" printed by the seller is a third thing again, and it is worth exactly as much as the seller's word. GIA draws the line between the first two plainly: its reports don't indicate monetary value, while an appraisal assigns a value based on current market conditions.

If a listing offers only the third kind, ask for the first.

How do labs test jade?

Labs test jade by choosing the tests that suit the piece and the question, then weighing the results together; no single reading produces a certificate. Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) looks for what was added to the stone and can also identify jadeite, Raman spectroscopy identifies the mineral, and refractive index, specific gravity and a microscope add evidence where the piece allows. A Type A conclusion comes from these methods agreeing with one another.

What does FTIR detect in jade?

FTIR (Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy) detects organic material in or on jade, such as polymer resin or wax, because carbon-hydrogen bonds absorb infrared light at roughly 2850 to 3100 cm⁻¹ and jadeite itself has almost none. Wax shows absorption near 2850, 2920 and 2965 cm⁻¹, while the resin in Type B usually adds peaks near 3040 and 3061 cm⁻¹, according to a 2018 report in Gems & Gemology, in which the same infrared testing also identified the stone as jadeite. These peak positions come from published cases, and labs read the whole spectrum rather than a single peak, so a missing resin peak doesn't by itself prove a stone is Type A. FTIR is nondestructive and usually needs no preparation. Infrared has been the main check for polymer since GIA's 1992 study of bleached and polymer-impregnated jadeite found it was the only method at the time that gave conclusive evidence of polymer.

Why does wax make jade testing harder?

Wax makes jade testing harder because it contains the same carbon-hydrogen bonds as resin, and it can be either a normal finish or a treatment. A thin polishing wax is the standard last step on Type A jade; wax pushed into jadeite that has been bleached makes it Type B, one of the three treatment types. The 2018 Gems & Gemology report described exactly that case from the Lai Tai-An Gem Laboratory in Taipei: a 277-carat bangle with a normal specific gravity of 3.34 whose infrared spectrum showed a significant quantity of wax inside the stone, with acid-etch marks under the microscope and a strong bluish glow under long-wave UV light. The lab's job is to judge how strong the wax signal is and what the surface shows, not simply whether wax is present.

What does Raman spectroscopy tell you about jade?

Raman spectroscopy identifies which mineral a stone is from the way its crystal structure scatters laser light, and it can also pick up resin. Jadeite shows peaks near 372, 698, 985 and 1037 cm⁻¹, while omphacite, its close relative, shows peaks near 680 and 1017 cm⁻¹, according to a 2011 study in Spectroscopy and Spectral Analysis; that difference is how a lab separates the two. Omphacite matters to buyers because it's the main mineral in mo cui, the black jade sold alongside jadeite, and some green omphacite looks like fine jadeite: GIA notes that it has the same gemological properties as jadeite and is identified by its Raman spectrum. Nephrite, quartzite, serpentine and glass each give a different pattern, and a 2003 study showed Raman can tell the resin in Type B from paraffin wax by peaks near 1116 and 1609 cm⁻¹.

A UV light, by contrast, is a screening tool rather than a test. Laboratories treat fluorescence as one observation among several: a strong glow calls for a closer look, and a weak one clears nothing.

Which lab should test your jade?

The lab's name matters less than three things: it tests jadeite routinely, its report states the treatment finding, and you can look the report up on the lab's own website. For most buyers of jadeite, that points to GIA in the US, NGTC in China or the Hong Kong Jade & Stone Laboratory, whose certificates Sotheby's Hong Kong cites for jadeite as natural, "known in the trade as 'A Jade'."

Does GIA certify jade?

GIA does test jade: it issues a Jade Report that identifies the material, and its December 2023 redesign added a section that details the type of jade, with a table of type definitions. When a listing says "GIA certified jade," it means the piece has a GIA report. As of January 2026, GIA also offers country-of-origin determination for jadeite jade and omphacite jade from Myanmar or Guatemala that hasn't been treated (our comparison of Burmese, Guatemalan and Hetian jade explains how origin and mineral composition interact). Origin is ordered as its own service, separate from the standard report.

Is an NGTC certificate legit?

NGTC is a legitimate lab, and a genuine NGTC certificate can be trusted; whether a particular certificate is genuine and matches the piece is a separate check, covered under reading a report below. NGTC, China's National Gemstone Testing Center, is state-owned, doesn't sell jade and has no stake in what a report says, and it is the standard reference for jadeite in the Chinese jade trade. The NGTC certificates that come with our pieces carry the CMA and CNAS accreditation marks and the ilac-MRA mark of international mutual recognition, and NGTC turns jade around in days rather than weeks. For confirming that jadeite is natural and hasn't been bleached, filled or dyed, an NGTC report is enough for most pieces. If an insurer, appraiser or resale platform wants a report from a particular lab, ask which labs it accepts before paying for a second test. Our NGTC certificate verification page explains why NGTC is the lab on our certificates and walks through a report line by line.

How to get jade tested, and what it costs

To get jade tested from the US, send it to a gemological lab that issues jadeite reports, such as GIA, through a jeweler who submits stones regularly, in person at a lab, or by insured shipping under your own lab account.

1. Choose the lab and the report. Confirm that the report states the treatment finding, and add shipping and insurance to the fee.
2. To submit to GIA yourself, open a GIA laboratory service account first; GIA won't accept items without one, and a mailed piece needs a memo with your account number, the service you want and return instructions.
3. Submit the piece through a jeweler, in person or by insured shipping.
4. When the report comes back, check that the photo, weight and description match the piece in your hand.

NGTC's mail-in service is booked through a Chinese mini-program with SF Express pickup, so it is set up for buyers in China rather than in the US.

Weight moves GIA's fee, so a jadeite ring stone sits in a lower band than a bangle, and a jade necklace pendant in a metal bail is priced on GIA's estimate of the stone alone. At NGTC, scope and speed move the price too: a grading report costs more than identification alone, rush service costs extra, and branches in different cities price slightly differently. NGTC says its mail-in service generally finishes testing within three to seven working days of receiving a piece; in our experience, the pieces we submit come back with their certificates within 48 hours.

Jade certification is worth it whenever a piece costs many times the price of the test, which covers most jadeite jewelry. For an inexpensive piece a single-piece report can be a large share of the price, so buying a piece that already comes with a verifiable report saves you arranging and paying for a test yourself. For a high-value piece, a second report from another lab can make sense.

How to read a jade lab report

A jade lab report worth trusting names the material, states the treatment finding, gives the weight and a photo of the piece, and carries a number you can look up on the issuing lab's own website. Under China's naming standard, Type A jadeite is named simply 翡翠 (jadeite), and a treated piece carries the treatment, as in 翡翠（处理）, jadeite (treated); the NGTC certificates on our pieces also note 翡翠（A货）, Type A jadeite, in the remarks. Hetian jade (和田玉) on a Chinese report is a material name for nephrite, not proof that the stone came from Xinjiang.

What a report leaves out matters as much. It doesn't tell you what the piece is worth, which is an appraiser's job, and an identification report doesn't grade quality: a Type A report on a coarse, opaque bangle can be entirely accurate while the bangle is worth little. A standard report doesn't state where the jade was mined either. And a report describes only what it was issued for, so for a pair of jade stud earrings check that it covers both stones, and for a bead strand, that it describes the whole strand. Confirming that a report is genuine takes a few minutes: go to the lab's website by typing its address yourself, look up the number, and check that the photo and weight match the piece in your hand, because a genuine report on a different piece proves nothing about yours. The certificate check in our guide on how to tell if jade is real walks through it step by step.

Jade testing questions

Can FTIR alone confirm Type A jade?

FTIR alone can't confirm Type A jade. It can identify jadeite and detect polymer and wax, but Type A also means no dye, which labs check with UV-Vis spectroscopy and the microscope, and a wax signal has to be read against what the microscope shows. A Type A finding comes from several tests agreeing.

Can you get jade certified from photos?

Jade can't be certified from photos. A lab needs the piece itself, because the tests that settle treatment, such as infrared spectroscopy and examination under the microscope, are done on the stone. Photos can support an opinion about what's worth testing, but not a report.

Can a jeweler or appraiser tell if jade is Type A?

A jeweler, appraiser or jade expert can often spot glass, dye or a wrong specific gravity, but confirming Type A takes laboratory instruments, infrared spectroscopy above all, read together with the microscope and other tests. Ask for a lab report rather than a verbal opinion.

How do I get a bangle or bracelet GIA certified?

Submit a real jade bracelet or bangle to GIA like any other piece: through a jeweler, in person at a GIA laboratory, or by insured shipment under your own GIA laboratory account. GIA's fee follows weight, and a jadeite bangle usually weighs a few hundred carats (the bangle in the 2018 Gems & Gemology report weighed 277 carats), so it falls in a higher band than a ring stone.

How to get jade appraised

Get jade appraised by an independent appraiser, and get the lab report first, so the valuation starts from a settled answer on what the stone is. Jewelers of America recommends an appraiser who belongs to a respected national appraisal organization, such as the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers, and follows the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), and it treats a GIA Graduate Gemologist diploma or its equivalent as the minimum gemological training. Those credentials are the filter to use when you search for a jade appraiser near you, and it is worth asking whether the appraiser regularly handles jadeite or nephrite. Say what the appraisal is for, too: an insurance appraisal reflects what it would cost to replace the piece, while an estate appraisal uses fair market value, which can be lower. A "free jade appraisal" from a photo is an opinion, not an appraisal. What an appraiser weighs once the material is settled is covered in our guide to how jade is valued.

Once you have a report, three steps keep it useful:

1. Keep the report with the piece, along with a photo of the two together, because a report is only useful while it matches the jade.
2. Keep a scan of the report somewhere apart from the piece, so losing one doesn't mean losing both.
3. When the piece needs insurance, take the report to an independent appraiser, who can then value the jade knowing what it is.

I'm Hong, and I have bought jadeite rough at Hpakant since 2016 and had it cut in our Kunming workshop. If you're unsure whether a piece is worth sending to a lab, email photos, and the report if there is one, to jadeworldchina@outlook.com and I'll tell you what I can see; that isn't an appraisal, but it can tell you whether a lab is worth the trip. More about how we work is on our About us page.

Sources

• Gemological Institute of America. "GIA Unveils the Jade Report." Press release, December 26, 2023.
• Gemological Institute of America. "GIA to Update Gemological Reports for Colored Stones." Press release, December 2025.
• Fritsch, Emmanuel, et al. "Identification of Bleached and Polymer-Impregnated Jadeite." Gems & Gemology, Fall 1992.
• Gems & Gemology. "Strong Fluorescence in B Jade Impregnated with Wax." Gem News International, Summer 2018.
• Sun Fangce, Zhao Hongxia and Gan Fuxi. "Nondestructive Analysis of Chemical Composition, Structure and Mineral Constitution of Jadeite Jade." Spectroscopy and Spectral Analysis 31, no. 11 (2011): 3134. In Chinese.
• Jewelers of America. "Jewelry Appraisers." Accessed October 2026.