With their timeless beauty and because they hold their value, gemstones have been bought, gifted and traded for centuries. But their value is dependent on several factors, and you do need a trained and certified gemmologist to determine these factors correctly. At IJGC this painstaking grading process is carried out under the supervision of our expert gemmologist Eddy Vleeschdrager. After all, good certification signifies that the factors that determine value have been examined and described by an expert and can therefore also be justified to third parties. Traditionally, this type of certification has always been a very expensive business, but IJGC wants to make certification affordable by going back to basics. First, we establish what information you need, then we supply it at a fair price. IJGC provides a questionnaire on its website that will help you, the customer, to determine what information you need on the certificate according to your specific situation. We help you to specify what tests we can carry out. The final price is therefore determined by the comprehensiveness of the certificate, irrespective of the size of the stone. You pay a fair, low price for the tests that are strictly necessary and a low additional fee for any extras requested. This principle is comparable to the approach used by low-cost airlines, where customers can choose how expensive their flight will be. You pay a fixed price for a cheap basic flight, but the final price depends on the omission or addition of extra services (such as more leg room or additional baggage allowance etc.). Applying this pricing method to grading certificates seems entirely logical, but with other certification companies the amount you pay is not based on this principle. They charge a fixed, high price, which is frequently based solely on the size of the stone. You can't choose how many factors you need to be described, despite the fact that this differs in each situation. You then get an extremely detailed examination of your stone and a luxury certificate and packaging. Consequently, as standard, you pay too much for what is generally superfluous information, even though it is only beneficial in very few cases, for example when dealing with extremely valuable stones. With our COApak (Certificate of Authenticity pack) packaging and sealing method we have managed to reduce your costs even further. The specially-designed COApak enables us to provide you with all the information you need at a glance, on the label that is also used to secure and seal the box containing your stone. Your certificate is available online and you can print it yourself if you wish. So with us, there is no unnecessary documentation, just a comprehensive, secure and ecological end product. Optionally, IJGC can also date a diamond based on the polishing technique used. Other certification companies don't recognise the added value offered by old diamonds because they don't know how to assess (or accurately determine) their rarity and consequently their additional value. IJGC however, has a renowned expert in this field, Mr Elkan Wijnberg, who would be happy to provide you with this extra service if desired. If you would like to know more about certification and the characteristics of gemstones, follow our links to discover a wealth of information: