During the pandemic, the UK officially left the EU at the end of the Brexit transition. Brexit has brought changes to travel between the UK and the EU, including new restrictions on the amount of alcohol and tobacco products that travellers from EU countries are allowed to bring into the UK. If you are travelling from one EU country via Switzerland to another EU country, Swiss customs regulations apply. Clearing customs may be faster than expected. European Union (EU) countries use three “channels” for customs clearance. If you are travelling from another EU country, regardless of your passport, choose the blue channel once you have collected your luggage. If you are coming from outside the EU, choose either the green channel – if you don`t have to declare anything based on the allowances listed below – or the red channel if you have goods above the duty-free limit. You can register goods online on the Gov.uk website from five days before you arrive in the UK. As this may be your first time travelling to the EU since Brexit ended, find out how many cigarettes or how much alcohol you can bring duty-free into the UK from the EU (and around the world, as the same rules apply to travel from anywhere). If you are travelling to the UK (England, Wales or Scotland) from outside the UK, your personal allowances allow you to import a certain amount of goods without paying taxes or duties. This means it`s usually cheaper than buying it from a retailer while you`re at home, but you can`t go too far and you`ll have a duty-free amount to meet. This applies to anything you buy abroad, both in a shop on the main shopping street and in a duty-free or duty-free shop.

The “origin declaration” is a formal sentence from the person or company from whom you purchased the items, which confirms: Note that each EU country can decide on a maximum quantity of tobacco products and alcoholic beverages that you can import into the country. These maximum amounts must be at least: Here are the latest duty-free allowances that apply if you come to the UK on a transatlantic flight or from outside the EU: The United Kingdom`s withdrawal from the European Union (a decision known as “Brexit”) officially took place on January 31, 2020. This withdrawal will be followed by a transition period until 31 December 2020, during which the UK and the EU will negotiate the terms of their future relationship. This article was updated with the January 31 withdrawal, and you can find up-to-date information on the details of the transition on the UK government`s website. Stricter rules apply to travelers under the age of 17. These may vary from country to country, so check before you travel. Here we look at what the current rules are so that if you use duty-free products from another country, you don`t get caught. You can bring one of the following points or split your exemption limit (e.g. 100 cigarettes and 25 cigars): If you are under 17, you are not entitled to an exemption limit for tobacco or alcohol. Customs and excise officers exercise some judgment on what you can bring to the UK from the EU. There is no limit to the amount of taxable goods you can import from most EU countries.

However, you can be arrested if you bring large quantities of alcohol and tobacco so that officers can determine if the goods are for personal use. Expect to grab their attention if you arrive from an EU country with more than the following offers: You can do this by checking online using a tool like Google Shopping or Kelkoo. Both will show you the item you`re looking for and the cheapest places to buy it. The Best Travel Toiletries From Sunscreen to Disinfectant Spray You don`t have to declare or pay taxes or duties on anything you import into Northern Ireland from an EU country, as long as you transport it yourself, it`s for you or a gift, and you`ve paid taxes and duties in the country where you bought it. The personal allowance you receive depends on your home country and the region of the UK where you are travelling. Brexit has brought new restrictions on the number of cigarettes, beer, wine, sparkling wine and spirits you can bring into the UK from European Union countries This proof can be an invoice or document from the person or company from whom you purchased the items, Includes: 200 cigarettes or 100 cigarillos or 50 cigars or 250 g tobacco Limits on EU tobacco imports into the UK are stricter than for tobacco consumption across EU countries. If you are now entering the UK from the EU, you can bring the following: As an individual, there are no restrictions on what you can buy and take with you when travelling between EU countries, as long as the products purchased are for your own use and not for resale. Taxes (VAT and excise duties) are included in the price of the product in the country where you purchased it, so no further payments are due in any other EU country. If you have to pay duty, the rate for goods up to £630 is 2.5% of the value – and if a single item is worth more than your total duty-free duty, you`ll pay that percentage on the total value, not just the amount above your duty-free. For goods with a value of more than £630, the amount of duty depends on the goods concerned. For more information, call the VAT, Customs and Excise Helpline on +44 2920 501 261 from outside the UK. You may also have to pay VAT on amounts that exceed your exemption limit.

The VAT rate is currently 20% for most goods subject to VAT. Depending on the EU country you are visiting, there is an upper or lower limit. If an EU country applies the lower limits, it can only apply them to land and sea travellers (Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia), i.e. to all travellers (Estonia and Romania). If you enter the EU from a non-EU country, you can take goods free of VAT and excise duty within the limits set out below and if they are not intended for resale. The same rules apply if you come from the Canary Islands or other territories where EU VAT and excise rules do not apply. What you can bring to the UK from the US may surprise you. For example, I have always thought that the restriction against meat, milk and certain plants means that visitors cannot bring food, flowers or plant matter into the UK. This is not always the case.

Here are some surprising things you can take with you to the UK: If you are transporting quantities of alcohol or tobacco that exceed the limits allowed in Switzerland, you must declare them when entering and re-entering the EU. In Switzerland, you may be asked to provide a financial guarantee, which you will receive when you leave the country with the goods. There are no personal allowances for tobacco or alcohol if you are under 17. You can bring alcohol and tobacco into the UK for your own use, but you will have to pay taxes and taxes on them before arriving in the UK. The exemption limits for tobacco and alcohol only apply if you are over 17 years of age. You can bring more than the allowance for your personal use, but you will have to pay customs duties on anything beyond the allowance. They can combine any of these tobacco products, but cannot exceed the total limit. Example: 50 cigarillos + 25 cigars = total allocation. For customs purposes, certain countries that would otherwise be considered part of the EU are exempt from these rules. If you import goods from the Canary Islands, Northern Cyprus, Gibraltar and the Channel Islands, you must follow the rules applicable to non-EU countries (see previous page). The country where the goods were manufactured (if you are travelling from the EU) There are new rules on how much you can bring from Europe without paying UK taxes and duties. Everyone has a tax-free amount, and if you go beyond that, you will have to declare your goods and pay what is due to them.

Your passport number (your driver`s licence or phone number if you are travelling from the UK to Northern Ireland) You can divide the exemption limit for tobacco products. HMRC, for example, states that “you could bring 100 cigarettes and 25 cigars (both half your pocket money)”. You can transport other goods up to a value of EUR 300 per passenger or EUR 430 for air and sea travellers. Some EU countries have a lower limit of €150 for travellers under the age of 15. In some cases, if you purchase it from a duty-free or duty-free store, some of these additional fees will be waived. Duty-free shops can usually be found when exiting or entering countries. This can be at the airport, on a ferry or near a country`s border. You cannot combine your personal allowance with someone else. You will have to pay customs duties and taxes on anything that exceeds the exemption limit, and you will also have to declare any prohibited or restricted goods that you may bring with you.

You may have to pay import sales tax, customs duties and excise duties on the alcohol you declare. Newcastle Airport is confident that summer security queues won`t last long Each of these amounts is equivalent to 100% of the sum of this last allowance that you can share. For example, you can bring half a liter of spirits and 1 liter of liquor wine – both equal to half of this allowance. You can also prove that you know how the goods were manufactured in the EU by using documents or records showing that the item complies with the rules of origin. See the Importer`s Knowledge section of the Proofs of Origin Guide) explains how to do this. This applies if you import (import) these items for personal or commercial use. Roaming charges have also been reintroduced by some providers, meaning it will be more expensive to use your phone abroad and you will now need more time in your passport before travelling to an EU country. Spirits and other spirits more than 22% alcohol: 4 liters There have always been rules for the purchase of duty-free items and these were last changed on January 1, 2021. Airports in Spain and Portugal with electronic gates for British passports.