duty rates?
 

Does anyone know what the duty is for bringing more than 1L liquer back from France?

How much more?

From http://www.customs.ustreas.gov/xp/cg...aying_duty.xml

If you're bringing it back with you, you didn't have it when you left, and its total value is more than your Customs exemption, it is subject to duty.

The Customs inspector 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.

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: Say 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 4 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 flat duty rate for a family of four traveling together would be $4,000.

Best wishes,

Rex

So my second bottle of alcohol, say Grand Marnier at $40 would have a duty of $1.60. What's the IRS tax?

Them's the rules, all right, but in our last dozen or so trips we've never had to pay duty on liquor; the Customs people didn't even ask about it, being far more interested in drugs.

I don't know what the IRS tax is. I was surprised to read this. I am touchy about telling you what the practical "consensus" answer might be (in my opinion) - - due to a certain thread about International Driving Permits...

But I suspect that there will be no consequences whether you declare the second bottle or not, and none of the US Customs officials will express any interest in levying or collecting duty on your second bottle of Grand Marnier.

Actually my "usual" answer on this question is based on a separate set of facts, which I do consider more relevant - - and they certainly are just as true. The jurisdiction over "importing" alcoholic beverages into your state (or the state where the airport is when you land in the US) falls to the Alcoholic Beverage Commission of the state, not the US government. Without an importer's license, it may be illegal to bring in that second bottle of Grand Marnier, no matter what duty is paid to US customs. There are urban legends of alcoholic beverages being confiscated by ABC officers, but I cannot find details of this, even though I have looked.

I have brought in 10-20 bottles of wine into airports located in many different states. I have notified customs agents, and at other times more or less concealed the purchases (just listing the purchase price, well under my personal dollar allowance). And I have never paid any duty even once. Countless other similar experiences have been reported here.

Thanks for the info. I was concerned I pay a huge amount if I brought an extra bottle or two.

I assume you mean bringing liquor into the US from outside. Generally you are allowed one liter as part of your exemption. Any amount in excess of that is dutiable at 3 percent, plus any Internal Revenue Service tax Take a look at the guide put together by the US Customs Services at customs.ustreas.gov. Click on "Travel" on the main page and then "Know Before you Go" to get to the import duty section.

If you are married, you will have an exemption of $1600, if you are single, you will have a limit of $800. That means everything you buy on your trip should be in the aggregate less than $800/$1600 for two. Above that amount, you will pay a duty of 3% on every $1,000 of items. (If you are married the flat duty rate is on $2000 worth of items.) The percentages increase on a sliding scale after the first flat duty rate.

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.

But unlike other kinds of merchandise, amounts of liquior beyond one liter are subject to duty at a flat rate of 3%, 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.

It appears that you may also have to pay a federal tax on any liquior in excess of one liter. The site is not specific about this. You might want to contact US Customs

State laws may 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 Customs, even though it may be more restrictive then Federal regulations