Duty Free Allowance

Help - I'm confused about what your allowances are when travelling on a Med cruise (to and from Southampton). Am I right in thinking that if you buy from an EU Country you can bring back what you like as long as it's for personal use, but that there are strict allowances, particularly from Gibraltar. If this is the case, do you then provide receipts at customs at Southampton on arriving back. Do you offer this evidence up, or wait to be asked for it. Thank you (in anticipation)

I don't seem to recall any customs inspection at Southampton port during our Med cruise last year.

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Yes, you have a wide scope with duty paid alcohol and tobacco from EU countries, but a very limited allowance from Gib- 200 cigarettes, and I can't remember if it's a litre of alcohol- look at the custom's page.

Yes, they can and do check at Southampton- we were once held in a queue for almost an hour whilst the customs made random checks, about 1 in 5, after a Gib stop; the last 2 cruises we've been on, the dogs were not just in the terminal sniffing the suitcases but they were on board, reportedly even in the buffet.

Remember that it's still HM Customs in Gib... it would only take a phone call to the branch back home if they saw people lugging bags full of booze/baccy.

Basically the same answer as Jo.

Yes, as you say, the law is "a reasonable quantity" from the EU duty zone - no actual figure is quoted in the law.

Gib (and the Canaries and Cyprus and the Channel Islands) are actually in the EU but not in the EU duty zone so the limit is 200 smokes & a litre of spirits & four of wine, or various alternatives.

In Gib buy enough duty-frees to smoke during your cruise as well as the 200 per adult to bring back.

(Madeira is in Portugal's EU duty zone, so EU limits apply. And you can transport them out of and back into the EU duty zone - so those on Canary Island fly-cruises which include Madeira can buy EU quantities in Funchal and bring them back via their Canary Island airport )

HM Customs or whatever they now call themselves suggest as a guideline that an adult "will not be questioned" if they bring back from the EU duty zone 800 cigs (4 sleeves) or equiv baccy, plus something like 110 litres of beer and 90 litres of wine and 20 of fortified wine and 10 of spirits

But you can bring back as much as you like provided that you can convince her majesty's finest that it's all for personal use or as gifts. If you tell them you'll be selling to friends - even at cost price - you'll lose the lot.

Chapter and verse at

https://www.gov.uk/duty-free-goods/arrivals-from-eu-countries

You'll not be able to fit that much booze in your cabin, let alone schlepp it on & off the ship.:rolleyes:

But I usually bring back around 25 sleeves of cigs, they save me hundreds of £.

I do quite often get tugged from the line by Customs - they let their dogs loose on the luggage lined up in the cruise terminal. I've been quizzed numerous times without a problem, they genuinely are for my use.

I always keep the receipt/s - customs officers are concerned not only with EU tax-paid but also with counterfeits. So only buy from tabacs, not guys in the street, & keep the receipt.

On one occasion I had a Southampton customs officer open a sleeve, then open a pack to check they weren't counterfeit.

I was sorely tempted to say something like "Hey, don't do that. How am I supposed to be able to sell them if you've opened them?"

But I held my tongue - customs officers aren't known for their sense of humour ;p.

BTW, prices are extremely variable in Gib, so shop around.

In Spain & Portugal prices for smokes are regulated so they're the same in any shop - and no discount for quantity, but hopefully a stack of freebie lighters or a half-bottle of gin :)

http://cigarettesprices.strikingly.com/#europe

JB :)

(still sadly addicted :rolleyes:)

Thank you everyone, this is very useful :) Co-incidentally JB, were the occasions on which you were "tugged" out of the line recent?

Thanks again

Thank you everyone, this is very useful :) Co-incidentally JB, were the occasions on which you were "tugged" out of the line recent?

 

Thanks again

Not in the last 2 - 3 years, Sue.

Quite annoying actually that it didn't happen on that Canaries / Madeira fly-cruise a couple of years back.;)

Flights or cruises that involve the Canaries or Gib are targeted by Customs, but I'd done the honest thing & bought tax-paid in Madeira & was kinda looking forward to putting one over on them at Gatwick when they thought they'd tugged a smuggler.

But I wasn't challenged.

Should've bought in Tenerife & saved myself a stack more money :rolleyes:

JB :)

Haha - it's always a bit of a regret when you look back and see a missed opportunity (albeit a bit of a 'naughty' one) ;)