International flights: Customs forms

Today I thought I would chat about the customs forms that need to be filled out upon re-entry into the US from international trips. I obviously have been thinking hard about my next international trip and have this on my mind!

When you are leaving your international destination and are flying back to the US you will be required to fill out a customs form for items purchased overseas. I have seen these forms distributed two ways:

1.     When you board your plane to head back to the US sometimes they hand them out as they are checking your boarding pass.

2.     The flight attendants on the flight will hand them out during the flight (anywhere from mid-flight to an hour before landing).

The 2^nd option appears to be the most common, IMO. The form is a standard form for US residents that requires you to fill out some information relating to what you are bringing back into the US.

Normal information that is asked on the form:

1.     Name, address, etc

2.     Flight # and airline

3.     Your passport #

4.     Items that you are declaring. (Your can declare up to $800 USD of items before you have to pay duty on it).

The reason for this blog posting is to give folks an idea of what I do to make this whole process easier. Yes, I’m a little OCD about things but after you have schlepped through the airport, gone through passport control, waited for your flight to board, been on a plane for 8+ hours then anything that can make your life more simple is a win-win for me!! (and as a note the crazy lady who sat next to me on my return flight from Madrid looked at me when I did this and gave me the look that said: Damn, I should have thought of that!!")

When I travel overseas I carry a small notebook with me in my messenger bag. Just an old-school 3” notebook purchased at Target for under $1. I find it useful for things like jotting down notes about places or attractions you visited during the day or adding names of folks who were helpful at those attractions (for TripAdvisor reports).

This kiddies, is a notebook. With paper!

Old-school!!

The night before my flight leaves to go home while I am packing and organizing I also take 5 minutes and take note of what I purchased and how much the items cost. Since you are packing these items and have them all in front of you it makes the process that much easier! I then jot this down in my notebook so that it is handy during the flight to fill out the customs form. It can be as simple as the following:

1.     Shoes/ Clothes               $70

2.     Books                            $40

3.     Candy/ olive oil            $50

You get the picture. Make sure that you estimate the cost in USD and not the local currency. Customs officers don’t care that that the items were purchased in Euro or Yen or whatever. They want the item in USD. I also don’t worry about exact amounts, just round up to an estimate of the cost.

Such a simple thing, and yes we have discussed the OCD factor in this. But hey, after a long flight (and perhaps some wine) you shouldn’t have to rack your brain to think about what you purchased on your vacation!!

Now I am told that with the new Global Entry system this will be done electronically and you are no longer needed to fill out the form, it is done at the kiosk. I still will probably use my little old-school notebook and just transfer it to the screen.

Hopefully this can help someone out and provide a little advice!! Remember, everyone is different and your mileage may vary but it works for me!!

Happy travels!!!