SteelCityBoy

I have an upcoming itinerary MAN-ZRH-STR and return on LX.

As it is a weekend away with the guys, I am thinking of buying a bottle of something malt whisky-esque on the outbound. It is legit from a customs perspective to use my ZRH BP to access duty free goods at MAN, even though my itinerary ends again inside the EU?

Also - what channel should I use to clear at STR? Blue or Green?

Captain Schmidt

Are the prices actually any different?

SteelCityBoy

Potentially not but as I am travelling hand baggage only my only option is to buy airside.

If I can do it I will. If I can't I won't.

catandmouse

SHouldn't really make any difference. The only thing that's duty free about duty free is the name. You'll be charged exactly the same price irrespective of where you're going to.
You'll go through immigration into the Schengen zone when you transit in ZRH, but not through customs (as Switzerland is not part of the European customs union). In theory, there ought to be a customs check in STR. I haven't been through STR recently, but my experience on flights from Switzerland into the EU is that the odds of a customs inspection are extremely remote. You'd probably be hard put to even find a customs official on arrival. In any case, as your duty free isn't really duty free, I don't imagine you would have any difficulty.
You do need to ensure that the bottle is properly bagged to go through transit security in ZRH, i.e. a sealed transparent bag with the receipt clearly visible.

:D!

I'm happy to be corrected on any of the following...

The OP would not go through customs in ZRH but the reason for this is not because CH is outside the EU, rather that the customs checks are only done (or not done as may be the case) when one is exiting the airport into Zurich

I've never been to STR, but at least in the UK there is a blue channel for EU arrivals (strictly speaking EU customs area arrivals) which is separate from the red and green channels for non-EU arrivals; I seem to remember that this is the case in some German airports, but in others one passes through the same physical customs channel and the "colour" of the channel is adjusted depending on the arrival. In any case it is true that the channel is unlikely to be manned, or if manned an inspection is unlikely to take place

If the OP presents a MAN-ZRH boarding pass (or declares that he is going outside of the EU) the retailer will log the sale as VAT-reclaimable, thus it will be duty free (but the price will be increased by 20% if the item was VATable)

I believe there will be no transit security in ZRH as the OP is arriving from a European airport

catandmouse

You pay the same price wherevere your destination is. Hence they are misnamed. The difference is that if your destination is non-EU (for example if you present the MAN-ZRH boarding pass), the retailer pockets the difference, as no duty or VAT is paid. I don't swear that this is what happens at MAN, but it certainly is the case at LHR.

SteelCityBoy

Thanks all for the contributions ^

As I have said before, buying less for price but more for the fact that I am travelling HBO.

Might therefore try picking up something in Germany.

Cheers.