John M
Super Nomad
Posts: 1922
Registered: 9-3-2003
Location: California High Desert
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Import cost?
In the event we were to bring back a case of wine from Baja and intend to declare it at US Customs how do they figure the duty?
John M
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djh
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Posts: 936
Registered: 1-2-2005
Location: Earth mostly. Loreto, N. ID, Big Island
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Mood: Mellow fellow, plays a yellow cello...
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I Think....
I believe you're allowed two or three bottles each (for personal use) without concern. (I've brought wine back into ID. from Canada.... and the US
Border / Customs folks never seem to be ableto tell me exactly WHAT is the actual limit... So I've managed two bottles of CA. Okanagon wine several
times, three bottles a couple of times, and a case once (with my brother and wife) without duty....
I imagine the MX / US Border / Customs folks are a bit more strict on these things...
You might check the US Customs web site, then PRINT the actual allowance language, so you have it in hand when you come back across.?
Please let us know if you discover any red gems !
djh
Its all just stuff and some numbers.
A day spent sailing isn\'t deducted from one\'s life.
Peace, Love, and Music
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djh
Senior Nomad
Posts: 936
Registered: 1-2-2005
Location: Earth mostly. Loreto, N. ID, Big Island
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Mood: Mellow fellow, plays a yellow cello...
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From :
http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/vacation/kbyg/paying_duty....
Alcoholic Beverages
One liter (33.8 fl. oz.) of alcoholic beverages may be included in your exemption if:
You are 21 years old.
It is for your own use or as a gift.
It does not violate the laws of the state in which you arrive.
Federal regulations allow you to bring back more than one liter of alcoholic beverage for personal use, but, as with extra tobacco, you will have to
pay duty and Internal Revenue Service tax.
While Federal regulations do not specify a limit on the amount of alcohol you may bring back for personal use, unusual quantities are liable to raise
suspicions that you are importing the alcohol for other purposes, such as for resale. CBP officers are authorized by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to make on-the-spot determinations that an importation is for commercial purposes, and may require you to obtain a
permit to import the alcohol before releasing it to you. If you intend to bring back a substantial quantity of alcohol for your personal use, you
should contact the port through which you will be re-entering the country, and make prior arrangements for entering the alcohol into the United
States.
Also, you should be aware that state laws might limit the amount of alcohol you can bring in without a license. If you arrive in a state that has
limitations on the amount of alcohol you may bring in without a license, that state law will be enforced by CBP, even though it may be more
restrictive than federal regulations. We recommend that you check with the state government before you go abroad about their limitations on quantities
allowed for personal importation and additional state taxes that might apply.
In brief, for both alcohol and tobacco, the quantities discussed in this booklet as being eligible for duty-free treatment may be included in your
$800 or $1,600 exemption, just as any other purchase would be. But unlike other kinds of merchandise, amounts beyond those discussed here as being
duty-free are taxed, even if you have not exceeded, or even met, your personal exemption. For example, if your exemption is $800 and you bring back
three liters of wine and nothing else, two of those liters will be dutiable. Federal law prohibits shipping alcoholic beverages by mail within the
United States.
(and)
Determining Duty
The CBP officer will place the items that have the highest rate of duty under your exemption. Then, after subtracting your exemptions and the value of
any duty-free items, a flat rate of duty will be charged on the next $1,000 worth of merchandise. Any dollar amount beyond this $1,000 will be
dutiable at whatever duty rates apply. The flat rate of duty may only be used for items for your own use or for gifts. As with your exemption, you may
use the flat rate provision only once every 30 days. Special flat rates of duty apply to items made and acquired in Canada or Mexico. The flat rate of
duty applies to purchases whether the items accompany you or are shipped.
(and)
The flat duty rate will be charged on items that are dutiable but that cannot be included in your personal exemption, even if you have not exceeded
the exemption. The best example of this is liquor: if you return from Europe with $200 worth of items, including two liters of liquor. One liter will
be duty-free under your exemption; the other will be dutiable at 3 percent, plus any Internal Revenue Service tax.
Family members who live in the same household and return to the United States together can combine their items to take advantage of a combined flat
duty rate, no matter which family member owns a given item. The combined value of merchandise subject to a flat duty rate for a family of four
traveling together would be $4,000.
Clear as mud, right?
Best Luck, John !!
djh
Its all just stuff and some numbers.
A day spent sailing isn\'t deducted from one\'s life.
Peace, Love, and Music
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MrBillM
Platinum Nomad
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Registered: 8-20-2003
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Importing ?
Although this hasn't come up in years for me, Back in the lates 80s, I (along with my wife) brought back Two Liter bottles of Liquor. I also had a
Case of Cerveza which I figured wouldn't cost much in duty. At the Calexico (West) crossing, I was told that the limit was one liter per person
PERIOD. Because I didn't want to give up the bottles, I had to stand in secondary and pour them each down a drain.
That being said, I have no idea what the State Law actually reads. I'm sure someone does.
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aliibike
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Posts: 49
Registered: 2-2-2006
Location: BCS
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I can remember pouring beer down the drain in Tijuana in the early 70's, one down the drain, the next down my throat, till the Border Patrol caught
me! They either look the other way, or take it away. No duty.
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