Updated 31/10/2026. Disclaimer: general information, not legal or tax advice. The only sources are official European Union pages (the European Commission’s Your Europe portal and EUR-Lex), linked in post 8.
The question comes up often: someone comes back from a trip outside the EU with a watch or sneakers bought there and wants to know what the rules say about what can come in tax-free in their luggage. This thread covers only that, the traveller allowances. Parcels sent by post or courier follow other rules, summarised in the thread on the €3 duty for parcels under €150.
[[PHOTO: Gráfico esquemático de una maleta en un control de aduanas de un aeropuerto de la UE, con las cifras «300 €» y «430 €» y la leyenda «franquicia por viajero»]]
Editorial summary, not independently verified.
The figures, according to Directive 2007/74/EC (Article 7) and the Commission’s Your Europe page:
- Goods other than alcohol, tobacco and fuel can come in free of VAT and excise duty up to a total value of €300 per person.
- For air and sea travellers, the limit is €430.
- Each EU country can lower the limit for travellers under 15, but never below €150.
Alcohol and tobacco have their own quantity limits, which this thread doesn’t cover.
Practical question: if the watch is worth more than the allowance, can its value be split between two people travelling together, each with their own allowance?
The Directive answers this directly in Article 7(3): for the purpose of applying the thresholds, the value of an individual item may not be split up. A watch is a single item with a single value, and the allowance is per person.
What happens exactly when the threshold is exceeded (how to declare and how the taxes are calculated) depends on the customs of the country of entry. The Directive doesn’t go into detail, so the reference is that country’s customs authority, not a forum.
Two conditions in the Directive that people often forget:
- Article 6: the import has to be non-commercial, meaning occasional and consisting only of goods for the traveller’s personal or family use or intended as gifts. The nature or quantity of the goods must not suggest a commercial purpose.
- Article 7(4): the value of personal luggage that is temporarily exported and re-imported isn’t counted towards the allowance. A watch you were already wearing when you left the EU doesn’t count as a purchase from the trip. The Directive doesn’t say how to prove it; that is also up to national customs.
What about customs duties, on top of VAT? Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009, Article 41, admits free of import duties the goods in the personal luggage of travellers arriving from a third country, provided that import is exempt from VAT under the national rules applying Directive 2007/74/EC. In practice, the reference is the same thresholds.
Important: these allowances are about taxes and duties, not about the rules on counterfeits, which are a separate matter. For that: Counterfeits and EU customs and, for Spain, Counterfeits and customs in Spain.
Reminder of the forum rules: posts with tips on not declaring, declaring false values or avoiding checks are removed. Neutral information, like in this thread, is allowed. Questions for the moderators go through the About page.
Summary (updated 31/10/2026):
- When entering the EU from a third country, goods in your luggage (excluding alcohol, tobacco and fuel) are exempt from VAT and excise duty up to €300 per person, or €430 by air or sea.
- Countries can lower the limit for under-15s, to a minimum of €150.
- The value of an individual item can’t be split, and the allowance is per person.
- It only applies to occasional, non-commercial imports (personal or family use, or gifts).
- Personal luggage that leaves temporarily and comes back doesn’t count towards the allowance.
- Customs duties follow the same logic (Regulation 1186/2009, Art. 41). The rules on counterfeits are separate.
Official sources (consulted on 31/10/2026):
- European Commission, Your Europe, “Rules for carrying alcohol and tobacco in the EU and leaving and entering the EU”, section “Other goods including perfume” (page last checked: 21/09/2026): europa.eu
- Council Directive 2007/74/EC of 20 December 2007, Articles 6 and 7: EUR-Lex
- Council Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009 of 16 November 2009, Article 41: EUR-Lex
Editorial summary, not independently verified.
Sure. The one people forget most is point 3: an item over the threshold isn’t split between two travellers.