Duty-Free Limits When Returning to the USA

[bartlett]

I am a US citizen returning to the USA next week for a quick trip home. After searching the Customs and Border Patrol website for duty-free limits, I am still uncertain as to how many bottles of wine I can bring back to the USA as gifts for my family. Does anyone know what the duty-free limits are on alcohol when a US citizen returns to the US?

 

[argsteve]

How many you going to try??... The most I have tried is 6 bottles.. the big problem is the weight of wine bottles... most Malbec is now selling in the USA for the same or about 1 more dollar a bottle then here Alamos Terrazas etc are cheaper in the USA then here!!! go figure?..... but of course you cant find everything in the USA that you get here........ you can bring back one liter of alcohol.. but wine and beer has always been a little of a grey area.....maybe someone else will know more than I do.... you will have no problem with a few bottles. If you bring back like 12 bottles the weight will kill you
you will be paying a 100 dollar charge for over-weight fees.. well just pack and wrap some 3-4 top good bottles-- bubble wrap it.. in your checked bags and there will be no problems..... cheers good luck

 

[PhilipDT]

2 tax free.

I took 12 back last time I traveled. I'm an "elite" flyer on Continental so thankfully I don't pay for overweight bags. Other wise I would have never bothered. If you're going to lug it all the way back I recommend expending the effort to find some good bottles that aren't exported to the US because, as argsteve pointed out, most argentine wines are cheaper in the US than they are here.

Also a lot of bodegas these days are bottling their top shelf wines in what another expat once amusingly called Rolland bottles which are ridiculous monstrosities that weigh as much empty as a normal bottle full. If you grab a case of one of these wines you'll break your back for sure.

With respect to taxes, even though 1.5L is the technical limit on alcohol importation, I've never paid bringing in wine from argentina or europe. This is most likely because the taxes are so low that the customs officers just don't find it worth it. I remember looking it up last time I flew to the states it came out to be something like $12 for about $500 worth of wine.

 

[dr__dawggy]

I have brought back 6 bottles several times without any problem from Customs. I agree with ArgSteve....many Argentina malbecs are available in the USA for less than in Argentina, including Luigi Bosca, Achaval Ferrer and Catena Zapata. Some of the smaller boutique wines may not be available in the USA so if you do decide to carry wine through with you, you might focus on smaller wineries.

 

[garygrunson]

I brought 6 bottles in suitcase a couple of years ago, however I believe that legally it is 2 litros