What are the rules for items brought in from the EU?
Simon Calder on post-Brexit rules, paying for airline seats, and holidaying in Greece
Q Can you remind me of the post-Brexit customs rules for bringing stuff back from the European Union to the UK?
Name supplied
A The Benefits of Brexit is the official government report that reveals all the improvements to life since the UK voted to leave the European Union. The government is adamant that one key benefit is providing access to cheaper alcohol and tobacco for arrivals from every foreign country, not just those outside the EU.
The report says: “We have reinstated duty-free shopping for all overseas destinations, including the EU.” Yet like many things to do with leaving the European Union, it’s complicated. The border down the Irish Sea between Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland) and Northern Ireland means allowances depend on which UK nation you are travelling to.
For Great Britain, all foreign countries are now treated the same. Travellers aged 17 or above can bring back 42l of beer and 18l of wine – plus either 4 litres of spirits or 9l of fortified or sparkling wine. (You can split this last allowance, for example bringing back 4.5l of fortified wine and 2l of spirits – both half of your allowance). Smokers can bring back 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 250g of tobacco.
For “other goods” the limit is strictly £390 worth of stuff – and if you are over the limit, you pay duty on the whole lot.
Yet there is a little-known extra concession for goods “grown or made in the EU using only EU ingredients or materials”. Yes: if you bought locally made items from the European Union (and are bringing them in from an EU country), you can avoid paying duty. You may need to show evidence to customs officials. For arrivals to Northern Ireland from the European Union, duty-free allowances do not apply. But conversely, there are no limits on what you can bring back (except from the Canary Islands, where the GB limits apply).
Q Are you aware of Wizz Air and their hidden policy of separating passengers that are booked together for their holidays? My partner and I travelled to Portugal last week. When checking in, we were given separate seats a long way apart. We had to pay £15 each to move our seats to sit together. The same thing happened on the way back, adding a total of £60 to our flights. We booked our holiday with Love Holidays and at no point were these extra charges documented. Is this common practice that I should look out for in future?
Simon W
A How annoying for you. Just about every other enterprise with a seating plan, from train operators to theatres, automatically seats customers on the same booking together. A number of airlines still do this for free, including (in my experience) British Airways and easyJet, for those of us who prefer not to pay. It was not so long ago that budget airlines had “free seating” when passengers simply chose their own seats. But carriers such as easyJet, Ryanair and Wizz Air saw an opportunity to monetise seat selection – persuading people such as you to pay for the opportunity to sit together.
Ryanair and Wizz Air take the notion to a new level, leaving selection to chance. Wizz Air tells passengers who book direct: “You have the opportunity to choose your seats for a fee while booking. If you prefer not to book one, we will assign a random seat for you during the check-in.” Regrettably, you were unaware of this because you chose to book through an online travel agent – Love Holidays – which does not have the best reputation for customer service.
What to do next time? Don’t pay, but rely on the kindness of strangers on the plane. I picked up your question just minutes after checking in for a Ryanair flight from London Stansted to Perpignan in southern France. After years of weary experience, I know that my companion and I are likely to be seated apart. So now I make two separate bookings. Surprisingly often we are seated close together – whereupon a little bit of shuffling with cooperative fellow passengers is all it takes to get a happy resolution. On this occasion, I am in 5A and she is in 20D. But I am sure we will manage: a seat assignment is only an opening gambit.
Q I have Admiral travel insurance, and after the Rhodes wildfire the company says: “You aren’t covered if you booked a trip to Greece from 23 July.” I haven’t booked anything yet but I fancy Greece in September. Will this rule last long?
Robbie H
A September is the ideal month to visit Greece, with lower air temperatures, thinner crowds and the Mediterranean at its warmest after heating gently all summer. I was as surprised as you when I saw what a respectable insurer like Admiral was saying for anyone booking after 23 July: “You aren’t covered if you booked a trip to Greece from this date.”
Now, when a calamity such as the awful wildfires in Rhodes occurs, it is standard practice for travel insurers to partially remove some cover – but only for trips booked after the situation becomes known and only for risks specifically associated with the event. For example, you should be able happily to book any trip to Rhodes and expect cover as part of your annual policy – except for risks directly associated with the wildfires. Were you unwise enough to venture into the afflicted area and injure yourself, you would not be covered.
I contacted Admiral on your behalf, and the company swiftly apologised and corrected its online information. A spokesperson told me: “In our haste to ensure customers had relevant information regarding the wildfires, we did include some incorrect information on our website.
“We can confirm that customers buying our travel insurance after 23 July would be covered under normal terms and conditions if they travel to Greece and make a claim that is not related to the current risks presented by the wildfires. We have urgently updated the website and apologise for any misunderstanding we have caused to our customers.”
In terms of a September destination, you can expect some bargains in Rhodes – where the north of the island is unaffected. Alternatively, a favourite island of mine, just off the coast of the Peloponnese, is Poros – accessible by fast ferry from Athens, but nowhere near an airport and therefore not as touristy as some other islands.
Q We were booked on a Ryanair flight flying from Newcastle to Palma last week. When we went to check in we were told there was an issue with my passport: although it didn’t expire till February 2024 it was over 10 years old (issued in May 2013). My partner and children flew to Palma without me. I then booked a flight with a different airline for the following day and flew to Palma as normal, returning a week later on my original Ryanair booking, no passport issues. Was I just lucky to get on the second flight out, and the Ryanair flight home, as no one was vigilant enough to check the dates? And do I have any case for compensation for having to buy a new flight the following day?
Lucy S
A How good to end the week with a question that gladdens the heart. I imagine it was extremely distressing to be turned away at Newcastle airport and to be separated from your family. The rules to which the UK asked to be subject when leaving the EU have caught out many holidaymakers: the passport must be less than 10 years old on the day of travel to the EU, with at least three months remaining on the day you intend to travel back.
Had you asked me for advice at the point you were correctly denied boarding by Ryanair, I would have urged you not to book a flight on another airline. It would surely be throwing money away: I could not imagine that you could get on board with a non-compliant passport, and breeze through the Spanish frontier without a problem. Yet you did, and I hope enjoyed the rest of your family holiday.
Yes, you were extremely lucky to get on the second flight out. I am afraid you have no case for compensation since your travel document was not valid for Spain. While checking in online with Ryanair, you had to tick a box certifying your passport was under 10 years old. Coming home, the only test for the airline is: will this person be admitted to the destination country? The answer: yes, because a British passport is valid for travel to the UK up to its expiry date.
While I cannot advise anyone to attempt to travel with a passport that does not qualify for the destination, I am heartened to know that the rules we demanded are not always rigorously applied.
Email your question to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder
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