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Q Will our kit get taxed when going abroad?
There have been some articles in the press about the British travelling abroad who have had to pay duty on their expensive (over £450 in value) items – in this case their ebikes.
This is due to Brexit changes where we can no longer take anything we wish into the EU unless we can prove it is going to return with us by purchasing an annual Carnet card from the Chamber of Commerce, which costs £320.
Do you plan to write an article about this, because it will affect thousands of readers who travel for their holidays to the EU and take expensive belongings with them – every bike/surfboard/boat/motorbike, etc?
Alan Coole
A I’ve not heard of such treatment by EU custom officials and my first thoughts were that it was nonsense for tourists to have such duty imposed upon them. However, having looked at various EU and gov.uk documents I became uncertain – the French customs website clearly shows, for entry into France with goods over a market value of €430 (£375), VAT and customs duty is payable. I believe this regulation is primarily aimed at EU residents importing goods purchased outside the EU, not tourists temporarily importing goods.
The obvious way to clarify the issue was to ask an EU official and this is the response I received:
• The provisions in the EU’s customs rules governing customs duty relief on the temporary import of means of transport are normal and well-established international customs standards. Their implementation with regard to temporary imports from the UK to the EU comes about as a direct result of the UK’s decision to leave the European Union.
• That said, customs authorities apply these rules in a proportionate way to imports of goods from all non-EU countries, without discrimination.
• In order to ensure compliance with these rules, customs officials may carry out any customs controls they deem necessary, including asking for proof that the goods will return to the country of departure in the future, such as within six months for motorhomes.
• There are many ways to support the claim that the importer intends to return the goods to their country of departure, including return ferry or train reservations, campsite reservations with an end date in the EU, or a residence permit for the country of departure.
This seems to indicate there should be no problem as, generally, most travellers with such a limited time of stay will have a return ferry/tunnel ticket.
That said, I wanted further clarification, so I contacted the press office of the French customs department, as France is our closest neighbour and so will have the majority of the initial entry/exit interaction with British travellers. However, I’ve had no response.
There doesn’t appear to be any question of paying duty on a private motor vehicle as a French customs document states, “You do not have to comply with any procedure if your stay in France is shorter than six months and if you take your private motor vehicle with you when you leave.”
This is also backed up by an EU document I have seen, which enables goods to enter the EU under a temporary admission procedure under certain conditions, which include the ability to identify the goods – and motor vehicles and motorbikes can, of course, be identified through their registration plate.
Other goods not identifiable can
