For you I recommend the suppository.

This reminds me of when I was 16 (a long time ago) and flying alone. I pre-ordered a bottle of sherry from the tax-free at JFK (!) and it was delivered to my seat on the DC-10 to Europe. I then had a beer on the plane and of course no problem in bringing the bottle through customs at my destination. I would suggest moderation with these things though.

My experience is land border, but I assume the duty is the same as it is paid to US customs. Bringing in liquor from duty free in Canada, I believe that I paid $2.85 per liter. Allowance is 1L per person after 48 hours out of the country.

If someone has two bottles they probably won't care and won't want to mess with the paperwork. If you have a dozen, your chances of paying duty went way up. I got sent to pay one time for about 15L - I ran over just to stock up. The custom's guy in the office apologized to me because the guy in the booth sent me over to pay. He said he would have let me pass just for being honest. It all depends on who you get.

If you declare it, you run the risk of having it confiscated. If you let your friends declare it, you run the risk of paying a few dollars in duty. I personally don't lie to customs, so I would let my friends declare it. Just figure in $3 extra to the cost to determine if it is worth hauling home, assuming it is something you can get here anyway.

If it was something i could get at home i wouldn't bother with the effort. I am in Argentinean wine country and would love to bring some home for gifts and myself. I think I'll bring back between 6-8 bottles. So I'll just have a friend declare it and if i must pay a few $$.

That statment is not accurate. There is no federal law in the United States regarding a minimum age to buy, posess, or consume alcohol. Those are state laws, and they vary considerably. All prohibit underage purchasing/possesion. Some don't prohibit underage consumption. Some do, but with exceptions like drinking with consent of a parent or spouse, or in your own house, or for religious reasons, etc.

That said, I wonder if customs agents have the authority, not to mention the inclination, to enforce state law specific to their location.

I brought back booze quite a few times before I was 21 coming back into the US. No one ever bothered me, just declare it on your customs form and make sure it is under a liter.

:( Brings to mind my frustration when I finally turned 21 (in the US). I went to the State Liquor Store, and they never even asked for my ID! I could have been buying the good stuff before I turned 21! Oh well!

Straight from the Customs website: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/va...aying_duty.xml


Alcoholic BeveragesOne 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.

Federal regulations allow you to bring back more than one liter of alcoholic beverage for personal use, but, as with extra tobacco, you will have to pay duty and Internal Revenue Service tax.

While Federal regulations do not specify a limit on the amount of alcohol you may bring back for personal use, unusual quantities are liable to raise suspicions that you are importing the alcohol for other purposes, such as for resale. CBP officers are authorized by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to make on-the-spot determinations that an importation is for commercial purposes, and may require you to obtain a permit to import the alcohol before releasing it to you. If you intend to bring back a substantial quantity of alcohol for your personal use, you should contact the port through which you will be re-entering the country, and make prior arrangements for entering the alcohol into the United States.

Also, you should be aware that state laws might 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 CBP, even though it may be more restrictive than federal regulations. We recommend that you check with the state government before you go abroad about their limitations on quantities allowed for personal importation and additional state taxes that might apply.

In brief, for both alcohol and tobacco, the quantities discussed in this booklet as being eligible for duty-free treatment may be included in your $800 or $1,600 exemption, just as any other purchase would be. But unlike other kinds of merchandise, amounts beyond those discussed here as being duty-free are taxed, 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.