^^ Awful!!!
Did the guy look like him? I always get somebody who looks like this guy and always with Zero sense of humor.
I think he's the head customs inspector at Hartsfield in Atlanta. I seem to get him every time, Encore.
How much duty have you paid for your Birkin/Kelly in the US?
- Thread starter barbie444
- Start date
I think he's the head customs inspector at Hartsfield in Atlanta. I seem to get him every time, Encore.
LOL I think they clone that customs guy. He finds me everywhere!!!
Funny, we are talking about bags, but my DH was pretty miserable when I said 'no no no' when he wanted to bring a few of these home from Europe.
Funny, we are talking about bags, but my DH was pretty miserable when I said 'no no no' when he wanted to bring a few of these home from Europe.
My experience with customs was much different than most other posters'. It was HORRIBLE!
We returned to Dulles & I dutifully declared my items purchased. We were then sent to another line for the duty to be assessed. It took FOREVER & the bags in front of us were being opened with EVERY SINGLE THING removed & examined!!! As we were a family of 3, we had quite a few bags & the thought of having to have every single thing removed & examined was insane.
Thankfully, once it was my turn, the officer only asked to see the bag I had purchased because he had NEVER HEARD OF A BAG BEING SO EXPENSIVE![How is that possible in the DC area?!?] Anyway, he filled out a form & sent us to another line for payment.
At the payment area, they applied some unknown formula & we were told we owed $xx (I can't remember if it was $75, or $150.) We paid the fee & we were sent back out to finally make our way out of another even longer line.
All in all, it probably took an extra 2 hours. It was really awful. [Not the fine, but the time.]
That is awful! We've had good luck at Dulles (w/jewelry, never brought any bags back), they have just waved us through. The only time we had a problem was w/a German ham -- they took it away
Think those who are not carrying authentic goods but got caught for not declaring and paid a fine would be good and truly miffed. LOL.
Doloresmia, thank you! This form will really save me a lot of time as I can have it completed before heading out to the airport.
Exactly Lily! We were so tired & my poor little 5-year-old DS was such a trouper!
Too funny, EH!!! Yep, he pretty much did look like a thinner version of that & he was truly shocked at the value of the bag. [And, it was just a Bolide & not even an exotic.]
ETA: And, we were only 1 of 3 people in these special lines------clearly tons of people were just not declaring their items.
^^^ Oh my gosh, Cinderlala, how awful, indeed. Upon returning home from a long trip, the last thing you want to do is stick around the airport for another two hours.
It seems like they were punishing you for shopping abroad.
Too funny, EH!!! Yep, he pretty much did look like a thinner version of that & he was truly shocked at the value of the bag. [And, it was just a Bolide & not even an exotic.]ETA: And, we were only 1 of 3 people in these special lines------clearly tons of people were just not declaring their items.
excellent choice! (^(oo)^)
i've come back with lots of purchases, properly declared up to EUR 20,000, and been waved thru every time (knocking furiously on wood!). I think it's helpful to have a relatively compact piece of luggage; I notice a lot of people who are struggling with multiple cases, or who've got those push-carts piled up with stuff, get stopped much more frequently.
also just some advice on the VAT / detaxe process - make sure you go to the detaxe window to get the forms stamped *before* you check in for your flight, as they sometimes (not always) will want to see the items you purchased. You can never predict how it will go; last time I was leaving Paris, I had a stack of about a dozen detaxe forms, and they just stamped all of them without asking to look at anything; the guy at the next window only had two forms, for shoes & a belt, and they wanted to see the items he bought.
Re VAT, it's 21% I think and you get back around 19%, so if you pay duty of 9% you're still ahead of EU residents.
Re detaxe, I have never been asked to show my purchases (in fact for years I checked 'em in but then realised this could be a major problem!) but of course that's just my experience. They can make you show them the lot.
Re detaxe, I have never been asked to show my purchases (in fact for years I checked 'em in but then realised this could be a major problem!) but of course that's just my experience. They can make you show them the lot.
as a tPFer this makes me laugh because immediately i thought what knuckleheads, what could be more fun than seeing piggy purchases.... which many of us have enjoyed on these pages? why look at some guy's boring shoes and a belt?
I agree, they certainly missed a treat not looking at the piggy's shopping goodies!
But, sometimes, they're just a little too interested . . . I was returning from Milan once and was mortified when the guy behind the counter actually took my black lace La Perla bra out of the bag and held it up, showing it to the inspector beside him. Then he did it again with a beige one, and a big discussion on lingerie ensued in Italian.
Fortunatley, the matching bikini panties were not displayed for half of Malpensa's passengers to critique.
I'm so sorry you had to go through this. Sometimes I think the mood of the customs officer makes a difference too. It's like some of them are cowboys on a power trip, although it's not a job I would want! Still, it makes the end of a trip so unpleasant, and that's putting it mildly!
The whole purpose of the VAT refund in Europe is because you are supposed to declare your goods in the US or wherever your home country is. Its to avoid double taxation. I've seen people have cameras, clothes and even engagement rings confiscated for sheer stupidity ie....carrying the item AND the receipt with them and not declaring the items. What I do now is I always carry a copy of my insurance papers with everything itemised.
There are several ways of "beating" the system that I've seen work very well but I'm not going to describe them. At the end of the day you will get caught eventually and its not worth it.
Before i was resident in the US I used to travel to NY 4-5 times a year and for some reason my passport got flagged for all US bound flights and every time for 3 years I got pulled aside and "randomly" searched at security on the way through. I'd never get even enough time for a coffee before boarding and like a previous poster mentioned my friends and family used to avoid passing through security with me at all costs. Thankfully just as mysteriously my name got flagged it also suddenly got unflagged and I've had no issues for the last 5 years.
If you are declaring and want to minimise the liklihood of being stopped then don't over pack. Also LV piggy is correct then tax refund staff are entitled to see any merchandise you are claiming for so you need to have it in your hand luggage or you can't get the refund. Everytime I've come through LHR I've had to show my items.
There are several ways of "beating" the system that I've seen work very well but I'm not going to describe them. At the end of the day you will get caught eventually and its not worth it.
Before i was resident in the US I used to travel to NY 4-5 times a year and for some reason my passport got flagged for all US bound flights and every time for 3 years I got pulled aside and "randomly" searched at security on the way through. I'd never get even enough time for a coffee before boarding and like a previous poster mentioned my friends and family used to avoid passing through security with me at all costs. Thankfully just as mysteriously my name got flagged it also suddenly got unflagged and I've had no issues for the last 5 years.
If you are declaring and want to minimise the liklihood of being stopped then don't over pack. Also LV piggy is correct then tax refund staff are entitled to see any merchandise you are claiming for so you need to have it in your hand luggage or you can't get the refund. Everytime I've come through LHR I've had to show my items.