What Does Duty-Free Mean?
Your personal, or duty-free, exemption is the total value of the merchandise you’re allowed to bring back into the country without paying additional duty. Generally, this allowance is $400 and carries limitations on how much alcohol and tobacco products can be included in this total. You are eligible for your personal exemption if you meet the following criteria: • Items are for your personal use or use in your home. • You have been out of the country for longer than 48 hours. (Any visit to the U.S. Virgin Islands or Mexico — no matter how long — counts. You may be eligible for a $200 exemption if you’ve been away for less than 48 hours, but, in this instance, you are not allowed to group your family’s exemptions together.) • Items are (physically) with you (Purchases that are being shipped to your home may not be included in your personal exemption, with the exception we mentioned earlier. You can, however, lighten your load by mailing home your dirty clothes, as long as they were m
