JohnnyD
Member
Mayenne (53) When Covid allows..........Which isn't very often these days........
Posts: 2,003
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Post by JohnnyD on Dec 8, 2021 11:23:39 GMT 1
Someone has asked me to bring them some cheese over when we come out.....how strict are the French with letting it in, and has anyone here had anything confiscated on entry yet?
Its for their Christmas/Boxing day feast so would like to help them out......
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Aardvark
Non-gamer
Living in soggy 22 and still wondering what's going on.
Posts: 2,172
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Post by Aardvark on Dec 8, 2021 11:34:19 GMT 1
Its a dairy product so prohibited, but you could play the gamble and try it. What's the worst that could happen? A lot of people are just waved through customs control without a check.
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Post by pcpa on Dec 8, 2021 12:20:44 GMT 1
I take cooler boxes with me in both directions, there are rarely any checks these days but when they have they have not asked me what the contents of the very visible coolers were or wanted to look in them.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Dec 8, 2021 12:25:44 GMT 1
It's prohibited. Personally, by car, I'd risk it but I wouldn't do it for another nor ask someone to take the risk for me. Each to his own.
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Post by tim17 on Dec 8, 2021 12:58:08 GMT 1
We've brought a couple of packs of cheese back from the UK recently and didn't get stopped, we certainly wouldn't have risked losing say £100 worth of meat and dairy though.
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Post by hal on Dec 8, 2021 13:03:34 GMT 1
The 'someone' who asked you must not like you very much to put you in that position.
Yes, maybe a small chance of being caught, especially in a car. But if you are caught, it is you who takes the can and not 'someone'.
OK, so French Douane are after the big stuff and unlikely to search everybody on a commercial flight, but be aware of the penalties if you are the unlucky one - fines between 1 and 5000€, and if tobacco or alcohol related add some time at M. Macron's pleasure!
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Dec 8, 2021 14:45:31 GMT 1
We know one person who had the contents of his car checked.
Why bring cheese from the UK France has the best cheese in the world.
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Post by pcpa on Dec 8, 2021 15:04:03 GMT 1
What's the worst that could happen?
The Douanier will look forward to a "Welsh" for supper.
Or you will be fined €5000 if you believe the doom & gloom merchants.
Or you eat it all on the spot to spite them!
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Post by annabellespapa on Dec 8, 2021 15:16:50 GMT 1
The 'someone' who asked you must not like you very much to put you in that position. Yes, maybe a small chance of being caught, especially in a car. But if you are caught, it is you who takes the can and not 'someone'. OK, so French Douane are after the big stuff and unlikely to search everybody on a commercial flight, but be aware of the penalties if you are the unlucky one - fines between 1 and 5000€, and if tobacco or alcohol related add some time at M. Macron's pleasure! I tend to agree with what Hal said, I wouldn't take the risk myself having seen a car stripped at Portsmouth in the summer. |
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Post by hal on Dec 8, 2021 15:34:14 GMT 1
Not trying to be doom and gloom, just giving the facts. We, the democratic we, voted to say bi-bi to the EU and these are the consequences. I have seen the Douane chase, stop and strip down two Harley Davidson motorbikes in a service stop on the A61. The ruthlessness and disregard to any 'rights' employed were enough to ensure I do not move too far, if at all, off the straight and narrow, notwithstanding any possible fines!  |
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Post by traveller on Dec 8, 2021 16:01:26 GMT 1
Yes I wouldn’t risk it, too much stress, funny that you can bring more or less anything back to UK, wish I’d bought more rillettes.
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Post by pcpa on Dec 8, 2021 16:14:40 GMT 1
Speeding aside!
The Border Control guards do very well on siezing (larger than 5l) jerrycans of fuel, seen it happen many many times and never ever a fine imposed, most memorable was a guy having 4 x 20l siezed only for the guy to complain "zees ees diésel and not essence like you told me, my voiture ees essence!" and with that he was then allowed to embarque with his fuel cans!
I have been scrutinised on every journey in each direction in the last year because I have been towing removal trailers, the first time they wanted to know that I had filled out the customs declaration and they took a copy, since then they have not even wanted to see my copy which I keep adding stuff to, most of the time they just ask what I am carrying and dont look inside, if they do its cursory.
I am definitely on their radar because of the frequent trips, last time on the way to the UK with the trailer empty they had a real good look for a false floor, lifting up the carpet tiles, looking at the joints in the plywood etc.
In 17 years the only thing of note was a pal having 4 cans of gun grade expanding foam siezed as hazardous goods by Eurotunnel, the guy probably had a project on at home.
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Post by annabellespapa on Dec 8, 2021 16:20:54 GMT 1
The 'someone' who asked you must not like you very much to put you in that position. Yes, maybe a small chance of being caught, especially in a car. But if you are caught, it is you who takes the can and not 'someone'. OK, so French Douane are after the big stuff and unlikely to search everybody on a commercial flight, but be aware of the penalties if you are the unlucky one - fines between 1 and 5000€, and if tobacco or alcohol related add some time at M. Macron's pleasure! I tend to agree with what Hal said, I wouldn't take the risk myself having seen a car stripped at Portsmouth in the summer. Just to add, the car that was stripped by customs at Portsmouth didn't board the ferry I was on, they had small children in car seats that were taken out and put on the tarmac so they could look under the seats, scarily efficient and a timely reminder to the 200+ cars watching whilst waiting to board. |
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Post by pcpa on Dec 8, 2021 16:23:37 GMT 1
Yes I wouldn’t risk it, too much stress, It's not a situation that would stress me, in the unlikely event that the guy is a Cheddar fan and want's a Welsh for supper they would take the cheese and I would continue on my way.
I always empty my fridge into chilly bins for the journey in either direction, there is no food as such that I crave and bring back from the UK to France but there will always be a carton of milk, some yoghurt, cheese etc from emptying the fridge.
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Post by plog on Dec 8, 2021 20:25:32 GMT 1
What's the worst that could happen?
The Douanier will look forward to a "Welsh" for supper.
Or you will be fined €5000 if you believe the doom & gloom merchants.
Or you eat it all on the spot to spite them!
Heard of somebody trying something along those lines going into Japan…customs let him get in with it and then when he’d finished his display of civil disobedience they fined him anyway… |
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