Duty Free Cigarettes

Padraig H

When returning from holiday in a EU country are you allowed to take back the 200 duty free cigarettes allowance. Some say it has to be from outside the EU, some tell me yes its ok.
Can somebody tell me which is right.

gg13533

If you have bought them in an EU country eg France or Germany, then I do not believe there is a limit.  If however it is some place like the Canaries, then the 200 limit applies

John7

This may be helpful - don't listen to "people", check the official information channels ........

Bringing goods into the UK: Arrivals from EU countries - GOV.UK

LV426

Only because the title of this thread says "Duty Free" - I'll point out that goods bought in the EU are not duty free in the true sense; they have EU duty paid on them.  Rates in many EU countries are a fraction of ours, making cigarettes much cheaper.  As the linked page above says - there is no actual limit on goods brought tax paid from elsewhere in the EU* for personal consumption.  
Travellers within the EU cannot purchase true "duty free" goods in, for example, airports, as it is mandated such goods are exported from the EU.  Retailers will refuse a sale for the wrong type of boarding card.

* (with exception for the various "tax havens", like Gibraltar, Canaries, Channel Islands, which are deemed to be tax-free zones)

Padraig H

Thanks for your replies. I have bought cigarettes in EU  cities and brought them back no problem.
What prompted my question was the last time I attempted to purchase a carton of cigs,  at Pisa airport in Italy they asked the destination on my boarding pass and when they saw UK they refused
explaining it could only sell to people traveling outside the EU.

LV426

That is to be expected at an airport "Duty Free" shop as I say.  Such goods are not duty paid and must be exported from the EU.  This isn't a matter of personal limits; duty free shops can only sell dutiable items for immediate export.

Padraig H

Thanks for confirming that. I did have someone swear they bought a carton of  duty free cigs at a airport in the EU and had no problem with them on returning to the UK.
I guess on some occasions staff will just sell them without bothering where your heading.
Am I right in thinking that would incur you having to pay the tax, in the case of a carton
of cigs £50/60 if customs found them on you.

LV426

It's far more likely that they bought tax paid cigarettes in an airport shop, somewhere in the EU that has lower taxes (and hence prices) than we do.  I seem to recall you can do this in Malta - although they are still a bit more expensive than elsewhere on the island.  

I believe that till operators in airport true Duty Free stores have no discretion; they barcode scan boarding passes, and would imagine the tills themselves either allow or prevent purchases of goods where the destination matters.  In one airport I was in recently (and I forget which) the liquor had two prices - duty free and duty paid.  Which price was charged depended on the boarding card presented.

I think the answer to your hypothetical question, though, is that you can probably pass freely through any EU customs checkpoint with up to 200 cigarettes on which no local EU duty has been paid - regardless of how and where they were bought.

mjn

If travelling from EU to EU destination you can't have Duty Free. However, i've brought back 3000 previously without issue.

Padraig H

Just returned from Amsterdam Schiphol airport. I think whats confused me all along is the price of
cigs at local prices are sold in cartons at airports which are far cheaper than the UK. At Schiphol
there were two sections. one for EU destinations at the prices I mentioned, the other duty free for destinations outside.