Bringing alcohol into the US
 

Apologies if this is the wrong forum but I figured my question was pretty general.

Anyway, having never flown into the US before, I was wondering what the import restrictions are for bringing alcohol into the US (specifically avoiding paying duty). I have been trying to use the TSA's and CBP's websites for the last half hour and both have proven utterly useless.

I am also interested which rules also apply for cigars. Obviously I cannot bring any Cubans with my but I just how many am I allowed?

Here's your website:

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/va...aying_duty.xml

It looks like you can bring in 1 liter of alcohol and 100 cigars duty-free, but read the page in its entirety. They also mention that various states might have state laws that are more restrictive than federal laws. You should check the state laws, as well. You will be concerned with the state in which you first touch down in the US, which is where you will go through Customs, as well as the final destination state.

Having said that, others might offer more specific advice from their own experience. I don't drink alcohol, nor smoke. I'm only looking at the CBP website for info.

I never bought anything duty free in the aiports themselves, but I have taken bottles of alcohol home in my checked luggage without any problems at all.

Oh, and the cuban cigar thing, I brought them back in my carry on luggage from Colombia and didn't face any problems.

Thanks for the link, though that seems to deal with US residents returning with items from travels overseas rather than visitors (me) bringing the same items over the border. Would I be correct in presuming that the same restrictions still apply?

I was planning to check them as well but I figured I would still have to claim them on whatever form they ask us to fill out.

I believe so. I found another website for you:

http://www.worldtravelguide.net/unit...rica/duty-free

This is not an official site, but it does agree with the 1 liter of alcohol and 100 non-Cuban cigars mentioned in the official CBP site.

The site does specifically mention a prohibition on Cuban-origin cigars, regardless of the country of purchase. A PP poster who mentioned Cuban cigars in his checked luggage is officially a smuggler.

No need to bring any. It's readily available. We repealed Prohibition back in the 30's. :D

It all depends on where you're flying into. Look at state laws -- they determine how much you can carry. If you're carrying anything over 1L, you need to declare it, however the duty is quite small, so you probably won't need to pay anything, but DO DECLARE IT. I've been told by CBP at SFO that they don't really care about alcohol as long as it's declared if it's over 1L/pax.

My sister brought 2 large bottles in her checked bag. No problem at all.. shes not even 21.. She never declared anything..

lol, it's more of a novelty, really. The friend I am visiting and I have a running joke and I want to bring a certain brand that isn't available in the US.

As for the Cuban cigar issue, I have read of many ways of getting around the embargo but I figured discussing them here would not go over so well. Nonetheless, thanks for the help and advice!

And if it helps any, I will be flying and staying in the ATL area.

While it's true that the traveler must comply with any state laws for the state in which they're entering, generally speaking, US Customs will not enforce state laws, and only care about the federal duty limits on alcohol. With the one exception being...

... that no importation is allowed for travelers under 21, since the drinking age in all states is 21. As to the above situation, it's the same as the Cuban cigar situation: it's called smuggling. I don't think the OP was asking about how easy it would be to smuggle undeclared goods in through Customs without getting caught, but rather was asking on what the duty-free allowance was.

Unless the liquor isn't available in the U.S. state you are visiting and it is really special, you might want to check local price and availability first. Some U.S. states do make it expensive and difficult to buy liquor (e.g., WA and PA) but it is cheap and readily available in others (e.g., NV, HI and CT).

That is correct, but the application of the law by customs will be at their discretion. I've been camping numerous times between 18 and 21 years of age from Montreal to upstate NY, often we brought beer into the US by land. Sometimes we'd be asked if we had any beer/etc, we would always answer honestly. We never got any confiscated, and we were usually told "just be good and don't drive if you drink". "Yes sir!".

HTSC

Declare everything but Customs is usually lenient about things like alcohol.

Yeah, wait a second. US Immigration is a federal agency, and the drinking ages are mandated by state law. I guess they wouldn't have the jurisdiction to stop that.

My wife and I recently brought back seven bottles of wine from Argentina in our checked luggage. We landed at DFW, declared all of them, and were just waved through customs.