Cigarette postage allowance

Ellie1984

Hi all, was wondering does anybody know if there is an allowance as regards to customs for cigarettes that are sent to Ireland via post from another European country? Usually if you travel to Ireland from another EU country the allowance is 400 cigarettes...is that the same regarding postage?
Thanks

TiGeR KiNgS

Ellie1984 wrote: »

Hi all, was wondering does anybody know if there is an allowance as regards to customs for cigarettes that are sent to Ireland via post from another European country? Usually if you travel to Ireland from another EU country the allowance is 400 cigarettes...is that the same regarding postage?
Thanks

Are you sure its not 200 ?

The answer is of course not, it would be unenforceable.
There would be millions of packages filled with the max amount of cigs going to dummy names.

fathersymes

The EU directives states that cigarettes must be carried on the person between borders, there is no limit for personal consumption although the Irish customs like to tell people it's 800. Having said that there is some provision whereby a gift of cigarettes may be posted, the limit if I remember correctly is 30.

Don't have time to post links to EU directive but a google will find it.

seamus

It's iffy. The rules around bringing cigarettes and alcohol in from another EU country only apply to goods being carried by a person travelling from one EU country to another.

To the best of my knowledge, goods being posted from one EU country to another are always considered "imports" and as such, cigarettes and alcohol sent through the post are always subject to duties.

It's not the case that all imported goods in the EU are exempt from VAT. Certain classes of goods (cigarettes, alcohol, fuel) are always subject to duty, except when carried by an individual for their own personal use (and within the defined limits).

I may be wrong though.

Jagle

fathersymes wrote: »

there is no limit for personal consumption although the Irish customs like to tell people it's 800.

so your telling me if i try bring 2000 fags home, and can prove they are for personal use ill be allowed?

seamus

Jagle wrote: »

so your telling me if i try bring 2000 fags home, and can prove they are for personal use ill be allowed?

Correct. The figure of 800 given by customs is the upper limit of what they consider to be an amount for personal use. Above that, you will have to somehow prove that they're for personal use.

Jagle

seamus wrote: »

Correct. The figure of 800 given by customs is the upper limit of what they consider to be an amount for personal use. Above that, you will have to somehow prove that they're for personal use.

wow never knew, for some reason i always thought/was told 200-400 never knew i can carry 800 no problem and that if i can prove it i can carry more, question is how do you prove it

fasttalkerchat

Jagle wrote: »

wow never knew, for some reason i always thought/was told 200-400 never knew i can carry 800 no problem and that if i can prove it i can carry more, question is how do you prove it

They should have a device similar to a breathalyser that can tell how many per day you smoke

Monife

Jagle wrote: »

wow never knew, for some reason i always thought/was told 200-400 never knew i can carry 800 no problem and that if i can prove it i can carry more, question is how do you prove it

This I would love to know. Was thinking maybe you could get a receipt (in Ireland) every time you buy smokes over the space of a week/month, keep them and bring them with you when travelling If they are for personal use and you bring back 2000 and say you smoke 5 packs a week, so that would be 20 weeks worth of smokes. Would customs allow this? Or is there a specific rule they use for classing "personal use" like whatever smokes you buy should only last you 4/6 weeks?

iseethelight

Jagle wrote: »

wow never knew, for some reason i always thought/was told 200-400 never knew i can carry 800 no problem and that if i can prove it i can carry more, question is how do you prove it

They'd all be the same brand for a start and one thats normally available in Ireland. Remember as well smugglers wouldn't carry a relatively small amount, if you sound and look plausible you should be ok. Smugglers would tend to be operating through non EU like the Canaries. Also some Eastern European countries are not tax harmonised so only 200 from there.

RATM

The limit for personal comsumption in the EU is not 800 as Irish Customs want you to believe, but 3,200 per person. Customs were caught out on this about a year ago and the Indo (IIRC) ran an article on it explaining all the ins and outs. Anyway what it came down to was that Customs here were forced to admit that the 800 figure they'd been throwing about for years was incorrect and that EU wide personal consumption limits were set at 3,200. Of course you have to convince customs that they are for personal use but that situation only occurs if you get stopped by them in the first place, which in my own experience has never happened in some 120+ trips through Dublin airport.

fAzI

RATM wrote: »

The limit for personal comsumption in the EU is not 800 as Irish Customs want you to believe, but 3,200 per person. Customs were caught out on this about a year ago and the Indo (IIRC) ran an article on it explaining all the ins and outs. Anyway what it came down to was that Customs here were forced to admit that the 800 figure they'd been throwing about for years was incorrect and that EU wide personal consumption limits were set at 3,200. Of course you have to convince customs that they are for personal use but that situation only occurs if you get stopped by them in the first place, which in my own experience has never happened in some 120+ trips through Dublin airport.

so this is mean that I can bring 3200cigs from poland? my daughter was bring that many last year and she was stopped and they let her take only 800. she say that cigs are for mother but they say no.

RATM

fAzI wrote: »

so this is mean that I can bring 3200cigs from poland? my daughter was bring that many last year and she was stopped and they let her take only 800. she say that cigs are for mother but they say no.

There is the problem- she said that the cigarettes were for her mother so that meant that they are not for personal consumption.

This article should help to explain it better. But the main thing you have got to remember is that they have to be for personal use- bringing them in for a relative will not be considered personal use.

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/no-limit-for-cheap-holiday-cigarettes-and-drink-2096877.html

fAzI

RATM wrote: »

There is the problem- she said that the cigarettes were for her mother so that meant that they are not for personal consumption.

This article should help to explain it better. But the main thing you have got to remember is that they have to be for personal use- bringing them in for a relative will not be considered personal use.

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/no-limit-for-cheap-holiday-cigarettes-and-drink-2096877.html

ok thanks.

apart from my daughter that is mean that i can bring how many cigs I want from poland or spain or however ?

RATM

fAzI wrote: »

ok thanks.

apart from my daughter that is mean that i can bring how many cigs I want from poland or spain or however ?

In theory you can bring in unlimited amount but there does comes a limit where customs believe they are no longer for personal use. In the EU the powers that decide these things have set that limit at 3,200. With alcohol it is different as you can explain huge amounts by way of throwing house parties, weddings, birthdays, etc but even for a heavy smoker 3,200 is around a 6 month supply so going over that limit may look like smuggling with the intent to sell.

So to clarify if you stick to the 3,200 limit and state to customs that they are for your own personal use then they will let you through. Another condition of that is that they are all the same brand- if you have different brands then they will also suspect you are smuggliing and are in their rights to take them off you. Put simply do not give them any reason to believe you are smuggling them for sale and you will be allowed in with them. A receipt for their purchase could come in handy too as they might try to say they were bought on the black market in Poland / Spain and the VAT is not paid on them.

I usually do 2 trips a year to either Poland or Spain and come back with 3,200 each time. I haven't been stopped yet but someday I might be. If I am I will be prepared with a receipt from where I bought them to prove the VAT has been paid in those countries. So long as I have no more than 3,200 on me and they are all the same brand and I can satisfy them that they are for my own personal use then there is nothing they can do about it- EU law backs me up on this 100%.

fAzI

RATM wrote: »

In theory you can bring in unlimited amount but there does comes a limit where customs believe they are no longer for personal use. In the EU the powers that decide these things have set that limit at 3,200. With alcohol it is different as you can explain huge amounts by way of throwing house parties, weddings, birthdays, etc but even for a heavy smoker 3,200 is around a 6 month supply so going over that limit may look like smuggling with the intent to sell.

So to clarify if you stick to the 3,200 limit and state to customs that they are for your own personal use then they will let you through. Another condition of that is that they are all the same brand- if you have different brands then they will also suspect you are smuggliing and are in their rights to take them off you. Put simply do not give them any reason to believe you are smuggling them for sale and you will be allowed in with them. A receipt for their purchase could come in handy too as they might try to say they were bought on the black market in Poland / Spain and the VAT is not paid on them.

I usually do 2 trips a year to either Poland or Spain and come back with 3,200 each time. I haven't been stopped yet but someday I might be. If I am I will be prepared with a receipt from where I bought them to prove the VAT has been paid in those countries. So long as I have no more than 3,200 on me and they are all the same brand and I can satisfy them that they are for my own personal use then there is nothing they can do about it- EU law backs me up on this 100%.

thank you for proper answer

TiGeR KiNgS

4. Duty-Free Allowances
(i) General

You are allowed to bring in goods (including gifts, souvenirs, perfume and clothing) free of duty, the combined value of which does not exceed:

€430 in the case of an individual aged 15 years or over
€215 in the case of an individual aged under 15 years
It is important to be aware that the above monetary allowances do not apply to any individual item the value of which exceeds the relevant limits. If you bring in something worth more than the relevant limit of €430 or €215, you must pay import charges on the full value.

If you are bringing back any duty-free goods you bought when you travelled out from Ireland, these count as part of your allowance.

In addition, you are allowed to bring in goods free of duty in the categories shown below subject to the upper limits indicated.

Back to Top

(ii) Tobacco Products

Maximum Quantities Goods
200 Cigarettes, or
100 Cigarillos, or
50 Cigars, or
250 grammes Tobacco

http://www.revenue.ie/en/customs/leaflets/pn1878a.html#duty-free

fAzI

TiGeR KiNgS wrote: »

http://www.revenue.ie/en/customs/leaflets/pn1878a.html#duty-free

so what is that aboce article about?

maybe we should write to the autor to explane this?

btw: his name is: Fiach Kelly

RATM

I wouldn't worry about that piece on Revenue's website- from what I see it refers to cigarettes brought from OUTSIDE the EU into the EU and yes that would be correct- 200 is the limit, say for example if flying from the US to Ireland.

But inside the EU the limit for personal consumption is 3,200. Revenue officials are on the record in front of a Dail committee admitting this which is what the Irish Independent article alludes to.

I still reckon though that Revenue delibritely want to confuse the issue because they don't want resourceful people flying down to Poland / Spain getting cigarettes legally for themselves but the official line is that 3,200 is the limit per person when travelling inside the EU, provided the VAT is paid in the country they were bought. HM Customs in the UK have also admitted this figure and thousands of English go over to France, Luxembourg & Belgium to buy smokes every day of the week. They don't like it but they cant stop it....

fAzI

RATM wrote: »

I wouldn't worry about that piece on Revenue's website- from what I see it refers to cigarettes brought from OUTSIDE the EU into the EU and yes that would be correct- 200 is the limit, say for example if flying from the US to Ireland.

But inside the EU the limit for personal consumption is 3,200. Revenue officials are on the record in front of a Dail committee admitting this which is what the Irish Independent article alludes to.

I still reckon though that Revenue delibritely want to confuse the issue because they don't want resourceful people flying down to Poland / Spain getting cigarettes legally for themselves but the official line is that 3,200 is the limit per person when travelling inside the EU, provided the VAT is paid in the country they were bought. HM Customs in the UK have also admitted this figure and thousands of English go over to France, Luxembourg & Belgium to buy smokes every day of the week. They don't like it but they cant stop it....

yes exactly I just read this now: PN 1878a - Customs and Excise Information for Travellers Arriving in Ireland from Countries Outside the European Community

but another leaflet showing this:

Maximum quantity and list of goods allowed as personal use
800 Cigarettes
400 Cigarillos
200 Cigars
1kg Smoking Tobacco
10l Spirits (whiskey, gin, vodka, etc.)
20l Intermediate Products - Alcoholic drinks not exceeding 22% vol. (e.g. port, sherry, some liqueurs, etc.)
90l Wine (of which only 60 litres can be sparkling)
110l Beer


so? where is 3200:)

Frisian

I know it's a kind of an antique thread but are there any new developements regarding the postage from any EU country into Ireland?
What is it exactly, 800 or 3200 cigarettes?
And I'm not talking when you're traveling, I mean when you have them posted, privately, of course.

Rascasse

You can post as many as you like but you will have to pay excise duty of €3.50+ per pack. There is no personal allowance except when travelling.