Owned Jewellery and Airport Customs
Discussion
If I was to wear a watch I already own on holiday, what do i need to do to ensure I don't get potentially pulled up at customs on return to UK? Some chat on another thread seemed to suggest that it's just chance whether you get pulled up, and unless you can prove ownership there and then, they can take it off you jut in case you might be trying to import it and skip paying duty! Could be scaremongering, but if you're just wearing a watch then is this really a risk??
To box things off officially you would need a carnets
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ata-and-cpd-carnets-ex...
but that looks serious overkill
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ata-and-cpd-carnets-ex...
but that looks serious overkill
so called said:
For many years now, I head out of Europe around 11 times per year and normally carry 2 or 3 watches with me.
Never been stopped.
Only problem I've had was back in August 2008 when I had an expensive one stolen from my hotel room.
Never been stopped.
Only problem I've had was back in August 2008 when I had an expensive one stolen from my hotel room.
To be fair you were asking for that weren't you? What earthly reason could there be to travel with two or three watches? Unless they're particularly unreliable?
REALIST123 said:
To be fair you were asking for that weren't you? What earthly reason could there be to travel with two or three watches? Unless they're particularly unreliable?
Some people dress their watch to their outfit and some just like to mix and match.I tend to take one, appropriate for my trip, but I did take a Breitling B-1 and my Citizen dive watch on a business trip (with a weekend's diving tacked on) once.
No-one's ever asked about my watch at customs. My underwater camera housing seemed to freak out Gatwick security last summer! They couldn't understand why I was taking a perspex box with me at first!
M.
Edited by marcosgt on Thursday 2nd March 15:04
Ziplobb said:
I don't go away that often but I have never thought thus would ever be an issue - I don't think I know anyone else that has ever had a problem. Missus Zippy always sports a bimetal date just and I have always had a variety of subs on my wrist and now a big IWC.
That must look a bit suspicious?
sidicks said:
That must look a bit suspicious?
I used to work with a seppo operations manager in Singapore who had a watch on each wrist, one for US time, one for local....He was a real live action man, everything was hurry hurry...... but too dumb to work out the time difference in his head.
marcosgt said:
REALIST123 said:
To be fair you were asking for that weren't you? What earthly reason could there be to travel with two or three watches? Unless they're particularly unreliable?
Some people dress their watch to their outfit and some just like to mix and match.I tend to take one, appropriate for my trip, but I did take a Breitling B-1 and my Citizen dive watch on a business trip (with a weekend's diving tacked on) once.
No-one's ever asked about my watch at customs. My underwater camera housing seemed to freak out Gatwick security last summer! They couldn't understand why I was taking a perspex box with me at first!
M.
Edited by marcosgt on Thursday 2nd March 15:04
I have four or five watches that I wear to match with my outfit. You wouldn't wear trainers with a suit or a dicky bow with a polo shirt so why would you wear the same timepiece with every outfit?
If you are a golfer then buying clubs in the US was a good money saver. To help with the return journey the advice was to take some cheap clubs out with you and replace them with the new ones. Either trade in or dump the old ones. You needed to remove all labels/packaging etc though. Maybe hit a few balls in the golf shop testing range to show impact marks on the club faces. Use a felt pen to mark the balls so they left ink traces on the clubs...easy to clean off.
Most golf shops were happy to help with the deception as it was a sale.
Most golf shops were happy to help with the deception as it was a sale.
silverfoxcc said:
Is there a limit pricewise on gifts you bring back?. My lad wants a NFL helmet. The NFL shop here in uk doesnt stock that team, and its only 38 dollars. will i get screwed on import duty etc at Heathrow?
$38 sounds very cheap, I purchased one from the waiting lounge at McCarran leaving Vegas a couple of years back, carried through in a plastic bag as duty free, nobody batted an eyelidred_slr said:
When it was $2/£1 there were quite a few people getting stopped.
I was stopped once and asked about a camera coming back from the US(bought in the UK to take on holiday with me!).
$1.24 to £1 yesterday, had my pension paid into HSBC, so that is the less than ideal bank rate!I was stopped once and asked about a camera coming back from the US(bought in the UK to take on holiday with me!).
Perfect time to import $$$ but not good if you want to buy American car parts.
Gassing Station | Holidays & Travel | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff