Yes, I was concerned about this. I did everything I was supposed to do regarding declaration and, when the agent waived me away without asking for payment of the duty, my worry was that there was no “proof”. I don’t think that he input any information in his computer about my claim, and since there are no declaration forms or global entry questions about purchases, what happens if I’m contacted at a later date? I thought about asking for his name once he waived us through, but didn’t. I doubt we’ll be contacted later because my purchase was only $500 over the $1600 allowance for 2 people, but I was stressed with the thought that, short of reviewing security tape, there’s no proof that I complied with the law.
US Customs discussion - airports, importing
- Thread starter esyee
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I do not think they would come after someone for such a small overage. Every time I come through with one like that, they wave me through as well. CBP told me it's the big purchases they watch for. It's literally not worth the paper and postage for them to bill us 3% of $500 or whatever LOL (IME, they assess at airport and usually send a bill later, very old school...I think they are understaffed like everyone else).
ETA: Just to be clear, no judgment intended in this thread. Words of caution maybe, because I personally don't know what I would do without Global Entry!
I will be going through Atlanta traveling to London and Paris in March. It's my first time and I want to bring back some purchases. I am definitely going to claim what I buy but just looking to see if what I read is true. I read you are exempt from paying tax on the first $800 and the next $1000 is taxed at 3%. The amount above that is taxed at 5%. Now I read people are waved through and many don't get charged. I just want to know what to expect. I will expect to pay but trying to learn as much as possible.
I always go thru ORD and it's a nightmare down in customs/baggage, etc. I went thru PHL once and they grilled me (I didn't have anything to declare so it was fine).
I flew from CDG to JFK last weekend into JFK Terminal 4 (Delta). I have Global Entry. As I was leaving the Global Entry area a customs agent asked if I had anything to declare and I said yes I had spent more than $800. When I told him the amount which was >$10K he told me I would have to pay duty. In the past when I have spent $2K-$4K I have been waived through.
They charged my the standard 0% on the first $800, 3% on the next $1,000, and 5.5% on the rest. I understand 5.5% is the lowest rate and they could have charged me a lot more since I believe the official rate for leather goods is 8%. The whole process only took about 5 minutes and the custom agent was very nice. The are sending me a bill since they did have a cashier working.
They charged my the standard 0% on the first $800, 3% on the next $1,000, and 5.5% on the rest. I understand 5.5% is the lowest rate and they could have charged me a lot more since I believe the official rate for leather goods is 8%. The whole process only took about 5 minutes and the custom agent was very nice. The are sending me a bill since they did have a cashier working.
A couple of months ago my husband and I flew into JFK from Greece and I declared my purchase which were upwards of $5K. They worked out the cost for me to pay and also were going to bill me as they were only taking cash. That was in early September, I have yet to get the bill. Wish I could have payed it then and there. I hate having it hang over my head.
Sorry for my delay. This is helpful. It is very odd that it’s no longer more aggressive on the part of CBP. While ignorance of the law is not a crime, it’s going to be hard to go after people for not seeking out an officer. You’d basically have to have someone standing at the exit ready to pounce on intent to leave the space without declaring. Or perhaps international vat return technology will make it a bit more automated.
In July we went through Seattle - Global Entry. The machine sent us to an agent and then they methodically went through every bag and charged every purchase based on some convoluted rate. The agent look very confused and it took hours (wish I was exaggerating) and was the last thing we wanted to do after flying from Paris. Also witnessed them being extremely rude to some travelers coming from Asian countries that did not speak english well. It was ridiculous.
just got back from Paris,I have global entry, the officer asked me if I have something to declare while looking at the monitor, I responded that I purchased more than $800 and he's reading the monitor while im telling him my purchases ..
on the other hand after I paid the duty and customs ,the officer told me "you did the right thing".
FYI 9% tax for leather goods.
on the other hand after I paid the duty and customs ,the officer told me "you did the right thing".
FYI 9% tax for leather goods.
In my experience different airports have different approaches . I have returned from Paris through Philadelphia, JFK, O’Hare, Charlotte and Detroit. For me Detroit has always been the most hard-core.
My most recent experience with Detroit was last week. No one asked me if I had anything to declare, but when I went through Passport Control, I volunteered that I needed to declare. I was escorted to Customs where they took my passport, told me to collect my luggage and come back.
When I had my luggage and was returning back to Customs, a different Customs agent approached me and asked me for my passport and to come with him. I explained I was already in the process of declaring and went back to the first agents.
My suitcase was opened and searched— I have had this happen in Detroit before, but not at any of the other airports where I have entered the US . I gave them my receipts and they did a by-the-book calculation of duty — $800 duty- free, 3% on the first $1,000 and 9% on the balance .
This whole process took 1.5 hours so it really dragged out. I chatted with them the whole time and asked questions . Here are a few ….
Question- why are passengers no longer asked if they have anything to declare?
Answer - It is your responsibility to tell us that you have to declare.
Question — Other airports have given me discounted duty rates for being honest, but Detroit never has . Why?
Answer - You shouldn’t have to be rewarded for being honest.
Question - Why do you search bags when someone has already said they need to declare ?
Answer - You would be surprised what we find.
I have to say that I will probably avoid Detroit in the future.
I came in through LAX last week. I have global entry and this thread reinforced that I need to declare (I didn’t want to risk my first ever birkin!). After I scanned my face in the scanner, a CBP officer asked me if I had anything to declare. I was truthful and when he asked what I bought and total amount, I was also truthful. They took my passport and made me wait for someone from the customs office to get me. I waited probably 25 minutes and asked twice if they could just let me walk over there myself. Finally one of the officers felt bad that I was waiting so long and walked me over to customs. It was a long tedious process and I’m pretty sure that I’m the only one on my flight that declared. There was a couple on my flight that scored a Kelly 25 but they told me they never declared on their past Paris trips and had no intention to do so haha. The customs calculation process was so painful that I now understand why people try to avoid.
I was charged a flat fee of 3% on everything but my handbags were charged at 9%. No bags were searched but I think it’s because the customs officer saw me pull out my huge pile of receipts! Lessons learned for next time….I’m going to shop at department stores whenever possible so my receipts are combined.
I was charged a flat fee of 3% on everything but my handbags were charged at 9%. No bags were searched but I think it’s because the customs officer saw me pull out my huge pile of receipts! Lessons learned for next time….I’m going to shop at department stores whenever possible so my receipts are combined.
I've never had this exact experience but I would agree with you that I also find Detroit the most "hard core" in my experiences as well. I'm sure someone will pop in here at some point and say they walked through this airport without declaring but that hasn't been my experience. I would say my latest time was the least eventful but they did ask to see the purchases to see if they thought they were "worth it". Spoiler, they didn't think so.In my experience different airports have different approaches . I have returned from Paris through Philadelphia, JFK, O’Hare, Charlotte and Detroit. For me Detroit has always been the most hard-core.
My most recent experience with Detroit was last week. No one asked me if I had anything to declare, but when I went through Passport Control, I volunteered that I needed to declare. I was escorted to Customs where they took my passport, told me to collect my luggage and come back.
When I had my luggage and was returning back to Customs, a different Customs agent approached me and asked me for my passport and to come with him. I explained I was already in the process of declaring and went back to the first agents.
My suitcase was opened and searched— I have had this happen in Detroit before, but not at any of the other airports where I have entered the US . I gave them my receipts and they did a by-the-book calculation of duty — $800 duty- free, 3% on the first $1,000 and 9% on the balance .
This whole process took 1.5 hours so it really dragged out. I chatted with them the whole time and asked questions . Here are a few ….
Question- why are passengers no longer asked if they have anything to declare?
Answer - It is your responsibility to tell us that you have to declare.
Question — Other airports have given me discounted duty rates for being honest, but Detroit never has . Why?
Answer - You shouldn’t have to be rewarded for being honest.
Question - Why do you search bags when someone has already said they need to declare ?
Answer - You would be surprised what we find.
I have to say that I will probably avoid Detroit in the future.
