Bringing items to the UK from the EU - VAT, Customs and Excise duties

[Silver-Fox]

I posted this for info, it doesn't affect me as we don't bring much alcohol or any tobacco back, and usually not much else either, but it may be applicable to those who do ...

Minxy Girl i think your missing an opportunity to make a few quid there.

I surprised at you being a Northern Lass and all that

 

[chaser]

What is wrong with some people! Can't they read a thread and comment without being mean-spirited in their response anymore?

I posted this for info, it doesn't affect me as we don't bring much alcohol or any tobacco back, and usually not much else either, but it may be applicable to those who do ...

As I am sure most do the same, you are going on holiday not a booze cruise, we in fact did bring about a hundred bottles of wine home every time, but it's not worrying me in the slightest if we now can't.

 

[Minxy]

Minxy Girl i think your missing an opportunity to make a few quid there.

I surprised at you being a Northern Lass and all that

I won't bring tobacco products back for anyone, if they want to smoke themselves to death they can do it without my help, as for alcohol, we only bring it back either for my hubby or as presents, won't do it for anyone else as chances are they wouldn't like what we got them!

The only stuff we brought back to sell was a load of Palestinian ovens (similar to Omnia ones) that were on offer in a French supermarket a day or so before we were due to return home. I knew a lot of funsters had commented about the Omnia version but wouldn't buy it as it's not cheap and if they didn't like it, it would be a waste of money. I thought they'd appreciate a cheaper version to see if they got on with it which would work just as well, so I clear out the shop and just sold them at what they'd cost me plus the postage. I could have made money on them but that wasn't the reason I got them in the first place, it's not worth loosing funster friends for a bit of pocket money.

 

[Dorset Diver]

The good thing Minxy Girl is that the limitations have not been returned to what they were before we joined the EU. Sadly I remember that . The limits now are more and probably enough for most people for personal use.

One thing that is a source of annoyance for me is that the EU will not allow us to take in meat, milk, and the products from them for personal use, but as far as I can see it is not reciprocal.

 

[Silver-Fox]

I won't bring tobacco products back for anyone, if they want to smoke themselves to death they can do it without my help, as for alcohol, we only bring it back either for my hubby or as presents, won't do it for anyone else as chances are they wouldn't like what we got them!

Ohh Minxy Girl youre happy for someone to kill their liver but not their lungs

Ohh the shame

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[Minxy]

Ohh Minxy Girl youre happy for someone to kill their liver but not their lungs

Ohh the shame

They be hard pushed to kill their own liver from the bottle we bring them back but their doing so won't mean others have to suffer breathing in their carcinogenic fumes.

 

[Garfields]

By the time you load up with your wine and spirits allowance the van will be over it's weight limit

 

[Gellyneck]

What about me and my single malt whisky?

Always been cheaper in France, not sure now.

It has repercussions in both directions

The difference in the cost of your malt is mainly as a result of the differing Excise Duty rates between UK (c£2,900 \ hlpa) and EU (c€1,000 \ hlpa).
As an aside, did you know France is the second largest market in the world for Scotch (maybe as a result of you reimporting so much of it!)

 

[chaser]

Has anyone actually priced up how much the duty is if you pay it ,would wine still be cheaper than buying here.

 

[Silver-Fox]

They be hard pushed to kill their own liver from the bottle we bring them back but their doing so won't mean others have to suffer breathing in their carcinogenic fumes.

I concede to that point

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[Richard n Ann]

Has anyone actually priced up how much the duty is if you pay it ,would wine still be cheaper than buying here.

We pay about €8 for 6 bottles of demi-sec fizzy white wine. So lots cheaper

 

[chaser]

Has anyone actually priced up how much the duty is if you pay it ,would wine still be cheaper than buying here.

Bloody hell, just answered my own question, won't be doing that then

19 unpalatable truths about UK wine duty

With new duty rates on wine in the UK from 1 February 2019, I’ve updated my statistics and thrilling graphics, and added some new tables for a fairly comprehensive guide to UK wine duty. A ra…

gavinquinney.com

 

[DBK]

I suspect some may not understand why these personal allowances have been reintroduced. I'll admit it wasn't something which was on my radar until quite recently.

I mentioned in my post above companies in the EU now have to register to pay UK VAT and then charge any applicable VAT on goods they send to the UK.

What I'm unsure of is whether goods will also include the local VAT element in the price they charge UK customers, for example in Germany Mehrwertsteuer? Or will exports to the UK be exempt local VAT being charged or will the supplier have to charge it then reclaim it? If the latter I suspect for small orders they may not bother and UK customers will pay more, if as I said in my earlier post they sell to the UK at all.

It will be interesting to hear how the first person doing a personal import of a MH this year gets on.

 

[ChrisSue]

Being the high rollers that we are we tend to buy bottles at around €2 to €3 .

Pre motorhoming we stayed on a site in Burgundy in a cabin. There was a welcome pack including a very nice red from the Aude. We were pleased to find it in the local Lidl at 95 cents a bottle.

 

[Dorset Diver]

Has anyone actually priced up how much the duty is if you pay it ,would wine still be cheaper than buying here.

It depends where you buy in the EU. For example in one EU country the tax on wine is just 2%. In the UK there are various duties and taxes that make the same wine here much, much more expensive. Then there will be the duty free sellers across the water that will enable you to buy duty free in the EU and import it into the UK free of duty provided you keep to the limits. Talk about going back to the good old days. I wonder if booze cruises will be resurrected?

Duty Free at Calais!

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[AXO66]

WINE AND SPIRITS

Rates over your personnal allowance are ...
taken from Minky’s limk HM GOVT

Wine Duty​

How much Wine Duty you pay depends on the strength of the wine (or made-wine) and whether it’s still or sparkling.

Type of wine or made-wine	Strength (ABV)	Rate per litre
Still	More than 1.2%, up to 4%	91.68 pence
Still	More than 4%, up to 5.5%	126.08 pence
Still	More than 5.5%, up to 15%	297.57 pence
Still	More than 15%, up to 22%	396.72 pence
Sparkling	More than 5.5% but less than 8.5%	288.10 pence
Sparkling	More than 8.5%, up to 15%	381.15 pence

You pay duty on wine and made-wine of more than 22% ABV at the same rate as spirits.

Spirit Duty​

You pay £28.74 of Spirit Duty per litre of pure alcohol.
Example
The Spirit Duty you pay on a 1 litre bottle of 40% ABVvodka is 40% of £28.74, or £11.50.

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[chaser]

It depends where you buy in the EU. For example in one EU country the tax on wine is just 2%. In the UK there are various taxes that make the same wine here much, much more expensive. Then there will be the tax free sellers across the water that will enable you to buy tax free in the EU and import it into the UK free of tax provided you keep to the limits.

See my last post duty more than we pay for a bottle.

 

[chaser]

£3 a bottle duty, the ones we used to bring back were only just over a euro all in.

 

[Nasher]

As I am sure most do the same, you are going on holiday not a booze cruise, we in fact did bring about a hundred bottles of wine home every time, but it's not worrying me in the slightest if we now can't.

Living in Wales, we have had to go on booze cruises to England!

We have 'minimal alcohol pricing' here, as does Scotland

 

[suavecarve]

Bloody hell, just answered my own question, won't be doing that then

19 unpalatable truths about UK wine duty

With new duty rates on wine in the UK from 1 February 2019, I’ve updated my statistics and thrilling graphics, and added some new tables for a fairly comprehensive guide to UK wine duty. A ra…

gavinquinney.com

If i have read that right it is £2.68 on a bottle of still wine (Duty and VAT) that I will end up smuggling back through customs if my liver decides that i need more than 36 litres between the 2 of us after July (ish) ......... which is fairly likely

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[Neil S]

Living in Wales, we have had to go on booze cruises to England!

We have 'minimal alcohol pricing' here, as does Scotland

Asda in Carlisle and Morrisons in Berwick do a roaring trade with folks who live close to the border nipping across to stock up

 

[Grianan]

Am I understanding correctly - each person can bring in 18l of wine with no duty to pay? Is that wine we buy in caves or supermarket in France or is it limited to duty free shops?

I’d be quite happy with that - we like to bring back a couple of cases of good wine when we go on holiday ...

 

[WillH]

Most of my overseas travel has been outwith the Eurozone so I cannot see what all the panic is about, there have always been customs restrictions and duties. The weirdest was the duty on matches in Australia.

 

[Dorset Diver]

Am I understanding correctly - each person can bring in 18l of wine with no duty to pay? Is that wine we buy in caves or supermarket in France or is it limited to duty free shops?

I’d be quite happy with that - we like to bring back a couple of cases of good wine when we go on holiday ...

I don't think it matters where you buy it.

 

[2657]

if you cant post without making trolling comments, you’ll find one day that you can’t post at all, please dont be surprised when it happens

In case anyone missed it this emoji is meant to indicate humorous content, at least that is my understanding of it....FUN anyone!

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[PJGWiltshire]

Only yesterday I was looking on eBay to buy something from Holland. I noticed it was a lot cheaper than a supplier here in the UK. It was only after looking in more detail and it soon became apparent the item was not including VAT from Holland. The VAT was to be added at check out by eBay who will then pass this on to HMRC. So be careful if using eBay and you see a cheaper item, it worked out the same price as a UK supplier in the end.

 

[chaser]

Am I understanding correctly - each person can bring in 18l of wine with no duty to pay? Is that wine we buy in caves or supermarket in France or is it limited to duty free shops?

I’d be quite happy with that - we like to bring back a couple of cases of good wine when we go on holiday ...

If that's the case, I don't see any problem, that's 50 bottles between us, just have to go more often .
But saying that is it every trip or does it add up over the year.
Do you have to declare it?

 

[Captain Yoghurtpot]

This is a very interesting thread and has had me working some sums this morning.
Forgetting the daft squabbling, one area for an individuals attention is the way in which it is packaged.
UK Hand Rolling tobacco can only be sold, in the UK, by law, in a minimum of 30g pouches and is usually packed in outers of 5, thus 150g per outer.
Some brands are also available in 50g pouches and are also packed in outers of 5, thus 250g per outer.
Most of the cheaper budget brands, and those often sought after here, are predominantly packaged in 30g pouches in outers of 5.
Tobacconists in Spain, for an example, are / we're keen to only sell full outers of any one product, so 2 full outers of 30g by 5 per outer is 150g per outer, 10 pouches, giving 300g total.
And therefore 50g over your personal allowance of 250g.
To reach your personal allowance of 250g, the closest you can get is 240g using 30g pouches, which is eight pouches, and would require the tobacconist to be splitting outers of 5 to give one full outer of 5 plus 3 pouches from the second outer, totalling 8 pouches.
This gets messy for the tobacconist, and I can honestly see individuals being enticed to just take the full outers, for ease.
50g pouches, if available however, would just be one straight outer of 5 giving the full 250g.

If you bought 2 x 5 x 30g pouches (10 pouches total) you are 2 pouches over your individual allowance.
If on average you pay 6 euros tax paid per pouch, this will cost you 60 euros.
At 1 euro to 90 pence that's roughly 54Gbp, but you are 2 pouches over your allowance.
If stopped, from what I can see, you could be asked to pay the following on the ENTIRE lot as thus:
Customs tax : 37.91 gbp
Excise duty : 81.42 gbp
Vat : 34.70 gbp
Total at 154.03gbp
Add what spent in tobacconist for the goods at 54.00 giving a grand total of 208.03gbp, just for being 2 pouches over your limit, just to "help" the tobacconists out as it saves them splitting outers.
That makes each pouch 20.80 gbp.
You can buy the same product in the UK, Duty and tax paid, Inc vat for 14.29gbp!
Is it worth the risk??
Just my considered opinion.

 

[chaser]

This is a very interesting thread and has had me working some sums this morning.
Forgetting the daft squabbling, one area for an individuals attention is the way in which it is packaged.
UK Hand Rolling tobacco can only be sold, in the UK, by law, in a minimum of 30g pouches and is usually packed in outers of 5, thus 150g per outer.
Some brands are also available in 50g pouches and are also packed in outers of 5, thus 250g per outer.
Most of the cheaper budget brands, and those often sought after here, are predominantly packaged in 30g pouches in outers of 5.
Tobacconists in Spain, for an example, are / we're keen to only sell full outers of any one product, so 2 full outers of 30g by 5 per outer is 150g per outer, 10 pouches, giving 300g total.
And therefore 50g over your personal allowance of 250g.
To reach your personal allowance of 250g, the closest you can get is 240g using 30g pouches, which is eight pouches, and would require the tobacconist to be splitting outers of 5 to give one full outer of 5 plus 3 pouches from the second outer, totalling 8 pouches.
This gets messy for the tobacconist, and I can honestly see individuals being enticed to just take the full outers, for ease.
50g pouches, if available however, would just be one straight outer of 5 giving the full 250g.

If you bought 2 x 5 x 30g pouches (10 pouches total) you are 2 pouches over your individual allowance.
If on average you pay 6 euros tax paid per pouch, this will cost you 60 euros.
At 1 euro to 90 pence that's roughly 54Gbp, but you are 2 pouches over your allowance.
If stopped, from what I can see, you could be asked to pay the following on the ENTIRE lot as thus:
Customs tax : 37.91 gbp
Excise duty : 81.42 gbp
Vat : 34.70 gbp
Total at 154.03gbp
Add what spent in tobacconist for the goods at 54.00 giving a grand total of 208.03gbp, just for being 2 pouches over your limit, just to "help" the tobacconists out as it saves them splitting outers.
That makes each pouch 20.80 gbp.
You can buy the same product in the UK, Duty and tax paid, Inc vat for 14.29gbp!
Is it worth the risk??
Just my considered opinion.

If you each have one already open in your pocket, does that count?

 

[Jaws]

In the opinion of the panel, will it still be the case that open and half empty bottles are pretty much ignored proving there are not too many of them ?

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