Customs

Traveling in Europe: how much tobacco and alcohol can we bring back?

Publié le 15 juillet 2025 - Mise à jour le 22 juin 2026 - Public Service / (Prime Minister)

You are leaving soon in Italy and you want to return to France with some bottles of limoncello ? You bought several cartons of cigarettes in Spain? Be careful, in the case of alcohol and cigarettes in particular, customs sets franchises, even when traveling in Europe. Public Service explains the regulations with 2 infographics.

Since 29 March 2024, the demonstration of the commercial character of a cross-border purchase of tobacco, alcohol or energy products is no longer based solely on the quantity transported. This follows the publication of a decree of 27 march 2024 published in Official journal of the French Republic on 29 March 2024.

Infographie - Travel to Europe: table of quantities of tobacco allowed to return to France
Illustration - Travel to Europe: table of quantities of tobacco allowed to return to France - plus de détails dans le texte suivant l’infographie
Illustration
Crédits : Dila - Service-Public.gouv.fr

Ouvrir l’image dans une nouvelle fenêtre

Please note

If you have any questions, please contact « Service Customs Information » on 0 800 94 40 40 (service and toll-free call) or +33 1 72 40 78 50 (from overseas or the foreigner).

You can find all the criteria and conditions, according to your situation, on the Public Service Bring back tobacco from the foreigner.

Infographie - Travel to Europe: table of the quantities of alcohol allowed to return to France
Illustration - Travel to Europe: table of the quantities of alcohol allowed to return to France - plus de détails dans le texte suivant l’infographie
Illustration
Crédits : Dila - Service-Public.gouv.fr

Ouvrir l’image dans une nouvelle fenêtre

You can find all the criteria and conditions, according to your situation, on the Public Service Bring back alcohol from the foreigner.

Please note

In addition, when traveling from or to a country within the €10,000, whether or not you own the sums transported.

Finally, certain goods are subject to restrictions (medicines, foodstuffs, weapons, works of art, pets,...) while others are strictly prohibited (drugs, counterfeits, meat, milk and meat and milk products, wild species [animal or plant], threatened with extinction...).)

Warning  

The overseas departments and regions and the overseas communities and territories are not concerned, nor are the Channel Islands, the Canary Islands, Andorra, Monaco and Switzerland. For these countries, you must consult the content dedicated to other territorial areas.

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