Guest JudgeMental Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 This is a question and not a statement of fact. but 2 members in last few days have mentioned French police/customs stopping UK vans and searching them I ask because i have a good few bottles of spirit on board (purchased in Spain,have receipt) It is for my daughters 21st in early june, and she is having a friends cocktail party and a family party day after. I will buy the champagne and wine/beer when I get to Calais to save on weight carrying.... what can French police do please? *-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Each country can set it's own guidelines for what it considers personal use but they must not be below the following:- 800 cigarettes 400 cigarillos 200 cigars 1 kg of tobacco 10 litres of spirits 20 litres of fortified wine (such as port or sherry) 90 litres of wine (of which, a maximum of 60 litres of sparkling wine) 110 litres of beer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Franco Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 I suspect if Police are involved with Customs staff that they are looking for drugs rather than personal allowance overages- unless someone is stopped with commercial quantities of Excise goods. Franco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airstream Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Hi French import info When entering France, there is a limit on items tourists can bring into the country without paying a duty. With a country like France, it's also important for many travelers to know how much wine they can bring back home, for instance. Here are some tips on customs regulations in France. Visitors can enter with items worth up to 175 euros (or 90 euros if you are under 15), plus the following, without having to pay a duty: Tobacco of either 200 cigarettes, 100 cigarillos, 50 cigars or 250 grams of smoking tobacco. If you have a combination, you must split the allowance up. For instance, you can bring 100 cigarettes and 25 cigars. Depending on the price where you live, you might consider bringing cigarettes with you. French cigarette prices are set by the government, and are quite high. Alcohol of up to two liters of still wine plus one of the following: one liter of spirits with more than 22 alcohol volume or two liters or fortified wine of 22 alcohol volume or less. Up to 50 grams of perfume and a quarter liter of eau de toilette. Up to 500 grams of coffee and up to 100 grams of tea. ???? Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Eddie, over the last few years we have been stopped every time coming into the UK and searched, never been searched going into France though. Customs have never questioed the amount of wine we have, in fact never seemed interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Eddie, over the last few years we have been stopped every time coming into the UK and searched, never been searched going into France though. Customs have never questioed the amount of wine we have, in fact never seemed interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retread24800 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Provided that French customs believe that purchases are not for commercial use then the quantities imported into France from an EU state (not Andorra, CI etc) are quoted here by the French Customs service, in French As for stopping various dodgy looking UK motor-homes perhaps they believe the average UK pensioner spends too long in a Dutch Coffee shop......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 I am OK in most repects going by lennys list as dont smoke..but its the spirits that are the problem! *-) Do you have any idea how much teenagers drink these days..I thought we used to drink ourselves into oblivion but these modern girls :D I will buy a gun before I leave they will be welcome to the contents of THAT! More scared of daughter then French police! :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Eddie, fly the wife out to travel back with you, then you can bring back another 10 Lt and still be £50 better off than UK prices. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Mrs Mental is flying over Friday for long weekend, as there is lots of clothes washing and cleaning to catch up on.........I wont be back for a few weeks yet. Daughter sending invitation to party as evidence.... that and the gun will have to be enough :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyishuk Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Been stopped in both directions for a cursory inspections. Once I had to unload to an extent that there could be no person was hidden. Otherwise no qestions about boose or ciggys. No sniffer dog, although it was wagging its tail in the boot of an eastern european car. Rgds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Oddly on the last two occasions we have been turned over by UK customs at Dover, I guess they are using profiling now, we fit the profile if it's couples in their sixties up to dodgy stuff. I was tempted to say something but I always remember they can confiscate your vehicle and not provide you with any remedy to get it back, so I'm politeness itself, though seething inside when I see folk being waved through that I for sure would be stopping, oh well perhaps they think I've got a load of illegals in a 5.5 metre panel van that I have charged for passage to supplement our pensions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 I'm bound to get pulled then:-S big bloke on my own with skin head haircut.....fit the smugglers profile pefectly I would think. One chap I spoke to lost £1800 worth of ciggy's to C&E recently Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KeithR Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 ive been searched at motorway services in france after leaving spain. they stopped every vehicle. werent interested in cigs/ alcohol, but tested all the motorhome surfaces, inside and out. was quite embarassing as my other half had flown home from barcelona. i was alone, with a van full of feemale garments, make up and frillies!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Momma Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 I was checked by the French Police at the Port on my return last month. I say checked, they were not looking for Cigarettes, Alcohol or drugs but I suspect 'Illegal Immigrants' as they asked how many were travelling in the van and then asked me to open the caravan door. They didn't even come into the van, even though I extended the invitation for them to come in and look around, but just cast a cursory glance around. Only a gesture on their part as I had the ability to have hidden a couple in the washroom, a couple in the Shower and one either side of the Island bed, all areas which they were unable to see without entering the van. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mirage Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Checking for illegal immigrants not the odd bottles, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 mirage - 2012-05-01 9:16 PM Checking for illegal immigrants not the odd bottles, They should come to the UK then, most of them are here already. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MandyAndy Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 We got pulled over a while back on our way out! the guy came in looked around didn't open bathroom door just said "see that guy over there he has one of these and I've always fancied one and like the look of yours so wondered what the inside was like" . *-) :-D spent ages chatting to him, on lookers must have thought we had garage full of humans. Mandy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Airstream - 2012-05-01 3:57 PM Hi French import info When entering France, there is a limit on items tourists can bring into the country without paying a duty. With a country like France, it's also important for many travelers to know how much wine they can bring back home, for instance. Here are some tips on customs regulations in France. Visitors can enter with items worth up to 175 euros (or 90 euros if you are under 15), plus the following, without having to pay a duty: Tobacco of either 200 cigarettes, 100 cigarillos, 50 cigars or 250 grams of smoking tobacco. If you have a combination, you must split the allowance up. For instance, you can bring 100 cigarettes and 25 cigars. Depending on the price where you live, you might consider bringing cigarettes with you. French cigarette prices are set by the government, and are quite high. Alcohol of up to two liters of still wine plus one of the following: one liter of spirits with more than 22 alcohol volume or two liters or fortified wine of 22 alcohol volume or less. Up to 50 grams of perfume and a quarter liter of eau de toilette. Up to 500 grams of coffee and up to 100 grams of tea. ???? Ray Can you say where your information comes from please, as it seems to conflict significantly with the advice given on the French Customs website, where the stated (and much higher) allowable quantities approximate to those mentioned by lennyhb above? Perhaps you are referring to purchases made in non-EU states? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Yes that sounds like an allowance when you are coming from outside EU *-) with a receipt,and evidence that for own consumption you should be able to bring in what you want (within reason) hardly qualifies for an open market otherwise does it :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinklystarfish Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 We were stopped by the Duane just pootling aimlessly north on one of the N roads about 150 south of Caen. There were two officers on motorbikes that drew up alongside and then indicated that we follow them to an aire type rest place. They were courteous and tried their best with English. They gave the van a pretty good once over and wanted to view every nook and cranny. They were looking for any contraband or any transgression of personal allowances. It wasn't any massive deal but it did bring home how it would be easy to be rumbled if you were into sneaking iffy gear about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Jones Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 JudgeMental - 2012-05-01 7:25 PM I'm bound to get pulled then:-S big bloke on my own with skin head haircut.....fit the smugglers profile pefectly I would think. One chap I spoke to lost £1800 worth of ciggy's to C&E recently Not got your wig on then Eddie? Seriously, the LAW within the EU is clear - a citizen can moved his/her own goods around within the EU without paying duty, which only kicks in when any of it is sold on to others. So can be no absolute "limits," only ever "guidelines" about what may reasonably be viewed as "for personal use." All the times we've been stopped have been either (a) by French customs (within country, not at border) asking whether we've been to Luxembourg or Andorra etc, looking for excessive cigarettes (b) by UK Border Cotrol, looking for illegals. But in both cases, the real reason was clearly © wanting a nosey in a smart-looking camper! Last time, in France, we had one unlabelled bottle of powerful Calvados made on-site by one of our France Passion hosts. We held our breath, but M Douane didn't bat an eyelid. 1footinthegrave I guess they are using profiling now, we fit the profile if it's couples in their sixties up to dodgy stuff. Oh dear, that's me in the frame now then! :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 We've been stopped before and they were looking for Illegal Immigrants, they did when we had the Caravan, looking under the bed and in the shower, we have however just come back with the van and a few times since and not been stopped. It could just be luck of the draw. We have also come back with wine for a party we are holding or just a bit of the good value stuff; I think they are looking for commercial resale amounts not normal consumption even if it is for teenagers or campers!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malc d Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 I seem to remember that a few years ago we were searched by a British customs officer, on the French side of the channel. Looking for illegal immigrants. She didn't even ask about drinks or tobacco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Thanks very much for the contributions all.....have built up a picture now and not to concerned, certainly not as concerned as when I started the thread :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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