Duty free on way back

Ilovecupcakes

Hi all

I will be flying back from the usa into terminal 5 heathrow next week and catching a transfer flight to scotland from the same terminal. I will have a few hours to kill between flights and as l wont have time to do any shopping in the usa l'm wondering if l will be able to shop tax free in the duty free in heathrow? I know that there is different rules for flights within or outwith the eu?

Any advice much appreciated!

antenna

Your flight is from Heathrow to Scotland,therefor no duty free allowance,they will look at your boarding card
is there any "duty free" on the incoming flight?

apt

You can't buy duty free drink and tobacco as an incoming passenger. This is the blurb on the website.

World Duty Free has created a great new shopping opportunity for all international travellers arriving at London Heathrow. The World Duty Free Arrivals Store offers a large selection of goods that passengers normally only see on their departure, sold at tax free prices. This is available at all terminals.

The range of items available include fragrances, cosmetics, confectionery and electrical goods. There is also a wide range of duty paid spirits, wines, champagne and beers, together with tobacco at duty paid prices.

Ilovecupcakes

antenna wrote: »

Your flight is from Heathrow to Scotland,therefor no duty free allowance,they will look at your boarding card
is there any "duty free" on the incoming flight?

Yes l think there is some, but usually l want the thing that has sold out

apt wrote: »

You can't buy duty free drink and tobacco as an incoming passenger. This is the blurb on the website.

World Duty Free has created a great new shopping opportunity for all international travellers arriving at London Heathrow. The World Duty Free Arrivals Store offers a large selection of goods that passengers normally only see on their departure, sold at tax free prices. This is available at all terminals.

The range of items available include fragrances, cosmetics, confectionery and electrical goods. There is also a wide range of duty paid spirits, wines, champagne and beers, together with tobacco at duty paid prices.

Ah l didn't see this on the site, l was wanting to buy cosmetics so it seems to be saying they should be tax free? Have made a list along with the normal high street prices so i'll know if they are cheaper

fifeken

I've seen several airports advertise buy now, pick up on your return.

If your's does, and if you're there and have time on your outbound journey, you could check prices and order if you think it's good value.

kittykarate

Last time I flew from San Francisco to Manchester via Heathrow, I was allowed to bring duty free I purchased in SFO through the security gates in T5. The bags were sealed by the duty free in the US and there seems to be a special exemption in place for some destinations.

If I can find a document about it I'll link it.

littlereddevil

I've never been allowed to take duty free through from USA when catching an onward domestic flight

kittykarate

http://www.heathrowairport.com/heathrow-airport-guide/heathrow-security/faqs

"
I am changing flights at Heathrow. Can I carry liquids, aerosols and gels in my hand luggage that I bought from the duty-free store at my previous airport?

It depends where you bought them. You can carry liquids, aerosols and gels through security at Heathrow if the following applies:

1. You bought the liquids, aerosols or gels in a passenger-only zone at an airport in the European Union*, Norway, Iceland or Switzerland, or on an aircraft operated by an airline based in one of these countries. Your items must be sealed in a tamper-proof bag provided by the airport or airline, inside of which must be proof of purchase showing that you bought them within the previous 24 hours; OR
2. You bought the liquids, aerosols or gels in a passenger-only zone at one of the following airports: any international airport in Canada or the USA; Dubrovnik, Pula, Rijeka, Split, Zadar or Zagreb in Croatia; Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia; or Changi in Singapore. Your items must be sealed in a tamper-proof bag provided by the airport, inside of which must be proof of purchase showing that you bought them within the previous 36 hours.

* EU countries are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom."


So, as long as the USA airport seals the duty free in a tamper proof bag, with the receipt inside you should be good.

This may be a BAA only policy though, so non-BAA airports like Gatwick mightn't do it.

kittykarate

Also, if you have a huuuuuge transfer time and a spare bag to use, you could always check in the duty free... Would mean you'd need to out and back in again, and hope they would be flexible on your bag count.

peachyprice

kittykarate wrote: »

Last time I flew from San Francisco to Manchester via Heathrow, I was allowed to bring duty free I purchased in SFO through the security gates in T5. The bags were sealed by the duty free in the US and there seems to be a special exemption in place for some destinations.

If I can find a document about it I'll link it.

But OP doesn't have time to buy in USA before she flies.

kittykarate

peachyprice wrote: »

But OP doesn't have time to buy in USA before she flies.

oops misread it, thought the OP meant they wouldn't have time to shop in the US and put it in their suitcase. Good on them if they can manage to not have to sit around in the US airport for 2 hours, that's why I end up splurging on shopping.