cigarette allowance no checks

[busymummy88]

I came off azura last week and used the self service to leave the ship, we never went through any security or anything and we only had 400 cigarettes but wondered if anyone had bought cigarettes over the limit and not been checked?

[louhun88]

I came off azura last week and used the self service to leave the ship, we never went through any security or anything and we only had 400 cigarettes but wondered if anyone had bought cigarettes over the limit and not been checked?

 

I never have but saw a couple being stopped by customs officers as they exited the arrivals area with their cases at Southampton - apparently they nearly had a case full of cigs!

 

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[Josy1953]

I came off azura last week and used the self service to leave the ship, we never went through any security or anything and we only had 400 cigarettes but wondered if anyone had bought cigarettes over the limit and not been checked?

We also got of Azura using self-disembarkation last week and as we came through there were 2 lots of customers officers who had people pulled over. One lady had obviously got too many cigarettes and packs of tobacco becausethere were several packs of each on the table and she was signing something as we walked pass. The system is the same as at the green channel at airports, people are pulled over and checked at random.

[busymummy88]

yea we saw that couple last week getting.checked I awondered why they had been pulled over and my husband said it would be a random check!

[Mysticalmother]

Busymummy88 - you did go through security...but you may not have realised you were being watched!

 

People were being stopped when I came through later at around 9.30. If you bought the cigs and booze on board ship then the duty free allowances are clearly shown.

 

My friend was going to buy more spirits (on board) than is allowed (but didn't) and asked the girl in the shop if Customs were notified what passengers had purchased. She said she couldn't answer that question.....

 

The moral is ...don't do it!

[louhun88]

Busymummy88 - you did go through security...but you may not have realised you were being watched!

 

People were being stopped when I came through later at around 9.30. If you bought the cigs and booze on board ship then the duty free allowances are clearly shown.

 

My friend was going to buy more spirits (on board) than is allowed (but didn't) and asked the girl in the shop if Customs were notified what passengers had purchased. She said she couldn't answer that question.....

 

The moral is ...don't do it!

 

Someone told me once that customs were notified don't know if it true or not?!

 

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[busymummy88]

no I mean my suitcase wasnt checked through security we had it from our.cabin til we got in the taxi never left my husbands hands

[the english lady]

no I mean my suitcase wasnt checked through security we had it from our.cabin til we got in the taxi never left my husbands hands

But if you purchased on board ship they would know what you had. If someone came aboard in port abroad with a suitcase full of ciggies I am sure customs in the UK would be told about it.

They don't need to look in your case.

They will look for the signs as you go through, and if they know there is a lot being brought through, they will stop.

[daiB]

But if you purchased on board ship they would know what you had. If someone came aboard in port abroad with a suitcase full of ciggies I am sure customs in the UK would be told about it.

 

They don't need to look in your case.

 

They will look for the signs as you go through, and if they know there is a lot being brought through, they will stop.

 

 

Cases are not checked by security when you get off only when you get on.

 

Customs on the other hand are interested. They do not check on every sailing but every time they have been there I have seen people being stopped with too much duty free. It is a different matter if you have bought duty paid in France or Spain.

 

 

 

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Edited June 19, 2014 by daiB

[SDadw01]

I never have but saw a couple being stopped by customs officers as they exited the arrivals area with their cases at Southampton - apparently they nearly had a case full of cigs!

 

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Do what you like, but you are committing a criminal offence if you exceed your limits !

[richleeds]

What about if you buy them say in Greece duty free then the ship stays within the eu for the rest of the cruise? Surely you can bring back a few hundred legally?

[dgs1956]

There are no Duty Free Allowances in the EU. You can bring back as much as you want as long as it is for personal consumption. My understanding is that you'll have a difficult job convincing Customs that in excess of 800 cigarettes per person is for personal consumption.

David

[Mysticalmother]

It is easy to confuse "duty free" which is what you are buying on the ship, and "tax and duty paid in the EU" . You also cannot mix the allowances

 

If you buy ashore for example the EU eg France and Spain, you are buying tax and duty paid in the EU - although their tax and duty is lower than in the UK so they are still cheaper than in the UK there are technically no set limits other than it must be for personal use. 800 gigs are generally regarded as "enough" for personal use and if you have more you are likely to be questioned. (These accepted Amounts are published on HMRCs website - somewhere!). If you buy them on the ship, you are allowed 200 duty free. No more. You cannot then add "tax and duty paid bought ashore on top. . There are limits on spirits and wine too.

Edited June 19, 2014 by Mysticalmother
Missed a couple of words out!

[Gilpet]

It is easy to confuse "duty free" which is what you are buying on the ship, and "tax and duty paid in the EU" . You also cannot mix the allowances

If you buy ashore for example the EU eg France and Spain, you are buying tax and duty paid in the EU - although their tax and duty is lower than in the UK so they are still cheaper than in the UK there are technically no set limits other than it must be for personal use. 800 gigs are generally regarded as "enough" for personal use and if you have more you are likely to be questioned. (These accepted Amounts are published on HMRCs website - somewhere!). If you buy them on the ship, you are allowed 200 duty free. No more. You cannot then add "tax and duty paid bought ashore on top. . There are limits on spirits and wine too.

 

Sorry to disagree but you can "mix" the allowances if by that you mean bring back 200 cigarettes bought duty-free and also cigarettes bought Tax and Duty Paid in an EU country - they are two different things and don't affect each other...........as far as I'm aware, but we have always done this with no problems and I've also checked HMRC's website and couldn't find anything on there saying they couldn't be mixed.

 

We were stopped by customs after a cruise on Azura. We had a lot of Tax & Duty paid cigarettes (enough to last till our next cruise) and also 200 Duty Free each, it was a real pain as all of our suitcases had to be emptied :eek: but we were totally legal and had the tax receipts to prove it, so ultimately it wasn't a problem. The customs officer was very friendly and polite and suggested that in future we pack all of our cigarettes together in our hand luggage, rightly or wrongly we interpreted this to mean that cases unloaded from the ship were x-rayed - either way it would certainly have been easier for us not to have to try and re-pack all the cigarettes after we'd retrieved them from where they were dotted all through our luggage.

 

Gill

[Adammara]

Locally, sniffer dogs are successfully used to find illegally imported cigarettes hidden in the shops. I seen dogs on the dockside at Southampton, who knows if they check the cases waiting to be collected!

[rubydoobydoo]

I have never been stopped but when we have visited a duty free country such as Gibraltar it seemd liked they were stopping every other passenger, as long as you don't exceed your duty free limit and keep your receipts for the duty paid ones you are fine to bring back what you want

 

I know someone who cruises just to go to Spain to stock up for the year on duty paid cigarettes as they are still so much cheaper, she loves the no baggage limit so takes an extra empty suitcase with her

[Hasthagotnowtmoist]

I never have but saw a couple being stopped by customs officers as they exited the arrivals area with their cases at Southampton - apparently they nearly had a case full of cigs!

 

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In a situation such as that, given how

Few people are stopped, you have to wonder if they have been tipped off?

 

 

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[KaththeTaff]

Customs seem more interested in cruises that have a stop in Gibraltar for some reason (£9 a carton there in 2008). They don't seem as interested in Norwegian cruises!

 

Gibraltar is not part of the EU either, something which caught a few people out on our cruise!

[kersh]

Gilpet you are correct and you can buy duty paid cigs and spirits as well as your duty free allowance.

 

We were confused on the Azura cruise as when we were in Barcelona there was a duty free shop at the port which were selling Golden Virginia cheaper than we had paid last year in Gibraltar. They were obviously duty free because they were less than half the price of the tobacconist in the town. We did not think they would sell them to us but they did. So much for no duty free within the EU.

 

We did buy 3 litre bottles of liquor from Gib but opened one of them to drink on the last few days sailing home. Apparently any spirits which have been opened and some of the contents drunk are not counted towards the allowance. Not sure if this is correct as we didn't get stopped by customs to check the theory out.

Edited July 5, 2014 by kersh

[Corfe Mixture]

Get real folks.

 

HMRC have many sources of information and they are not going to tell you what they are, but my guess is that if you bought them on the ship, then they will show on your account.

 

The cruise line will have an arrangement with HMRC to minimise the disruption caused to changeover day arising from HMRC doing detailed checks of 3000 pax and you can bet that 'sharing intelligence' is part of that deal.