I have been living abroad for over a year in SE Asia. Returning to the US, I will not be bringing anything of value purchased abroad aside from a cheap laptop.

I have read that you can bring home $800 worth of goods. But what is not clear to me is, if I have less than $800 worth of goods, can I simply walk down the "nothing to declare" aisle, or do I need to itemize stuff anyway and go through the customs process?

I have seen conflicting advice online. Some say you need to list every single thing you bring back no matter what. Others say if you are under the limit you don't need to bother.

I think it would be pretty obvious to them even if I were stopped that I was not over the $800 limit, but would like to get some advice from a more frequent traveler who may have encountered this situation before.

Thanks.

I've never filled in the back of the form with a list of purchases and never been asked more than perfunctory questions. I wouldn't worry about it. Just put an approximation of the total value of purchases on the appropriate line on the front of the card.

Also, the US doesn't have a "nothing to declare" aisle. You go to the customs person sitting at the kiosk and give him/her your form. There's no red/green lane like there is in some other countries. Usually the customs agent takes your card, asks you some basic questions like where were you, what were you doing, etc., and then tells you to have a nice day.

I'd advise you to keep the receipt for your laptop handy, particularly if it's a nice one. On the unlikely chance that you get questioned about it, you can show the receipt to the agent to back up the price you declared.

First of all, I have never seen a dedicate, " nothing to declare" , line going through Customs entering the US. They are common in Europe and some Countries in Asia. I have always gone through a single/double line to hand over the Customs form or to have a quick talk.

As for declaring, item 15 states to place a value of the items that you have purchased overseas. Personal items you brought from the US to overseas and back again to the US do not need to be declared.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/PrintMe.xml?xml=$/content/travel/pleasure_vacation/sample_declaration_form_.ctt&location=/travel/vacation/sample_declaration_form.xml

In literally hundreds of trips overseas I have NEVER itemised my purchases since I've always been below the limit.

Just put total value on the front, save the receipt for the laptop if you have it, and be ready to answer any questions honestly

I have usually lumped multiple items into a broad category such as clothing or books or toiletries. Of course, i have rarely broad back more than 4-5 items. The customs agents rarely ask any questions; they just take the form from you and wave you through (or occasionally grunt hello if I say good morning or some other greeting). I did witness one family being taken aside for further screening, but it was not apparent why they were selected other than the fact that they had a lot of luggage.

The US doesn't have "Nothing to declare" lines. You fill out the customs card no matter what.

That being said we have always just put a dollar amount (we've never even gotten close to the limit) and that has always just been rounded off at that. Only once has it been questioned at all, the one day we got directed through the foreigner lines rather than the citizen lines. (The foreigner lines were almost empty, they started feeding some of us into part of the non-citizen area.) The guy seemed to have a very hard time with the concept that I wouldn't consider buying electronics in China--I think he thought I was being evasive when in reality I was just tired.