Cuban Cigars - Can I Take 'em Back 2 Us ?

[phormio]

We're heading back to the US from bangkok for a couple of weeks so my 2 yr olds grandparents can spend some time with her. Got some empty bags and was thinking of what I should take to the US and what I should bring back from the states.

Is it legal to take Cuban Cigars to the US (just a box of 25 or so)? I was quite surprised to find out they cost around $6/cigar or about $150 per box.

Can I buy handicrafts here and take them with me to the US (small quantities for gifts - perhaps 2 or 3 at most of various items) without having to pay customs duties?

What about returning to BKK from the US? If I buy a new digital camera and maybe an IPOD Nano(or two) , will they give me a hard time at the Don Muang?

I was thinking of buying a couple of decorative swords/sheaths for my brothers' birthday and packing them in my checked baggage. Will I have a hard time with this at the airport in the US?

What are the rules and what are the realities?

Thanks

[bakachan]

my brother used to smuggle a box or 2 of them from mexico into the us.

the method he used was to buy a box of cheap cigars and put the banding around

each cigar and use the cheap cigar box.

he thought he was caught when a federal cop opened the box and said "these sure

look like cubano's"

[RDN]

We're heading back to the US from bangkok for a couple of weeks so my 2 yr olds grandparents can spend some time with her. Got some empty bags and was thinking of what I should take to the US and what I should bring back from the states.

Is it legal to take Cuban Cigars to the US ...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You might like to look at this thread - US citizens are not allowed to buy or smoke Cuban cigars anywhere in the world: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=18641

Hey! It's your country, not mine.

[craigt3365]

We're heading back to the US from bangkok for a couple of weeks so my 2 yr olds grandparents can spend some time with her. Got some empty bags and was thinking of what I should take to the US and what I should bring back from the states.

Is it legal to take Cuban Cigars to the US (just a box of 25 or so)? I was quite surprised to find out they cost around $6/cigar or about $150 per box.

Can I buy handicrafts here and take them with me to the US (small quantities for gifts - perhaps 2 or 3 at most of various items) without having to pay customs duties?

What about returning to BKK from the US? If I buy a new digital camera and maybe an IPOD Nano(or two) , will they give me a hard time at the Don Muang?

I was thinking of buying a couple of decorative swords/sheaths for my brothers' birthday and packing them in my checked baggage. Will I have a hard time with this at the airport in the US?

What are the rules and what are the realities?

Thanks

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If you are not American, you can bring back a few boxes of Cuban cigars. Not sure how many, but definitely 2 boxes. If you are American, forget it! Not only will they confiscate it from you, but maybe even fine you...and keep you holed up for several hours while they grill you and try and find out if you are a communist sympathizer. My friend got caught with them and unfortunately he had just come back from Cuba. He got busted bad.

Regarding bringing stuff there and back. No problems as long as it is not too much. If it is, then they will get you on the customs. I brought back 20 or so silk hangings last time, along with a lot of other goodies for gifts. And then took back to Thailand my new camera, iPod, some new computer gear, etc. No problems.

Can't help you with the sword though

[Smokin Joe]

As already stated, definitely not legal. andt Although craigT's friend may have had a bad experience I wouldn't worry about bringing in one box. I do it ocassionally and never had a problem .

The key points I would recommend are:

Be polite

Only bring a small quantity, 1 or 2 boxes max.

Pack them so they would have to dig through your bags to find them, not placed on top so they are the first thing you see when the bag is opened.

Be polite.

If they are found, NEVER admit that you knew you weren't allowed to bring them back.

Did I mention being polite.

I think the worst you have to worry about realistically is losing them to a customs agent .

The part about never admitting you knew it was wrong was advice from a cigar smoking lawyer I met in Tijuana. He said that admitting you knew something was illegal is a big problem if they do decide to bust you. Ignorance of the law, despite claims to the contrary, is a good excuse when it's all you've got.

Deleted comment about inviting a customs agent to try and take my cubans. It might be construed as a threat and the sneaky bastards may be reading this.

Oh yeah! Where can I buy a box of 25 cubanos for $150? that's a ###### good price.

[aughie]

It's not legal but the custom agents really don't look for them. Six dollars for a Cuban cigar? Which brand and type? Cohiba Coronas are $20 each in Havana or anywhere else in the world as far as I know. I think the Cuban govenment sets the price worldwide so there aren't any discount prices. I may be wrong. Be careful buying inexpensive "cuban" cigars.

[ovenman]

Be careful buying inexpensive "cuban" cigars.

I suppose it would really suck to get busted for importing Cuban cigars if the cigars in question were Cuban in label only.

[fxm88]

A lot of cuban cigars are not cuban. And a lot of the cigars that actually do come from Cuba were in fact made somplace else and only packaged in Cuba (not unlinke most American-made cars these days). So unless you really know what you're looking at why bother?

Wow, I just found this article from last year. Seems that American Citizens are prohibited from smoking these things even while travelling abroad. How long until we see "Smoke a cuban cigar in this country, go to jail in yours" signs around Pattaya?

So don't forget:

If you smoke that cuban (or "cuban") cigar...

then the terrorists have already won!

Edited October 4, 2005 by fxm88

[thedude]

$6 is really cheap for cubans. they are either undersized like petit coronas or they are not hand made. smoking machine made cubans is like....like....coming all the way to thailand and dating a katoey.

edited for bad english.

Edited October 4, 2005 by thedude