need up to date info on duty free restrictions coming into the us from italy can you purchase duty free on the plane if not, how do you buy duty free and get it back to the us

Hi fp,

There are duty free shops at the airports.

However, unless you have extra Euro that you just want to get rid of, I suggest doing your shopping away from airports.

The duty-free shops start at higher prices and then take off the VAT.

You can bring back $800 worth of merchandise pp without having to pay US Customs duty.

Ira is right. Some time ago I did some comparison shopping in Rome and at duty free and didn't find anything cheaper at duty free. In fact, even with the VAT knocked off most items that did not have preprinted prices like books, calendars, etc were more expensive at duty free than in Rome.

When we flew out of Rome last week, I asked at one of the duty free shops about buying alcohol to bring back in my carry on (Canadian). It was fine, but if you were a U.S. citizen, you could use only the one specified duty free shop (so while you still can shop at the duty free, there will be the added security). If you buy (for example alcohol) somewhere other than the duty free, you would have to pack it in stowed luggage, not carry-on, and risk the chance of breakage.

It was my understanding that ,yes you could buy duty-free liquids , they deliver them to the plane as you board, and that's fine.

The problem comes , if you are not flying directly to your home airport in the US , when you want to board your connecting flight in the US and are not allowed to carryon liquids. and have no way to get the purchases into your checked through baggage.

Actually, it's not as much of a problem to re-pack duty-free purchases in your checked luggage as you might think. For a long time now, US customs has required that you claim all your luggage at your first point of entry into the US. So you can just take your bottles, put them in your checked bags, and drop off the bags at the connection baggage belt outside Customs. Just be prepared to do that and you'll be fine. Many airlines have suspended duty-free sales on flights to the US, so you should actually check with your airline on that topic.

One caveat: This works as long as you are on a nonstop from Italy back to the US. If you have to connect in Europe, you might not be able to carry liquor onto your US-bound flight.

Ira's advice is actually the best. Shop before you go to the airport, pack your purchases in your checked luggage, and then you don't have to worry about anything.

I'm well aware that you have to reclaim and recheck your bags on arrival. But you'd have to plan ahead on what you were going to buy at the duty-free shops, leave room in your checked bag , chance having red wine or olive oil all over your clothes if something broke, tempting some baggage handler to remove that fine cognac you purchased, a tight connection..there are just too many variables to bother with it, especially since you won't be saving that much money ,if any.