Buying tobacco and other nicotine-containing products when travelling abroad
When returning home from a trip abroad, there are no charges on tobacco and other nicotine-containing products you bring in for private use. To escape paying charges, you must keep within the charge-free quantity (the allowance) you can bring in as a traveller. This further depends on whether you buy the goods in another EU country or in a country outside the EU.
There are some rules you must obey no matter where you buy the tobacco and other nicotine-containing products:
- You must be at least 18 years old.
- The tobacco and other nicotine-containing products must be for your/your family’s¹ private use.
- You must have bought and be transporting the tobacco and the nicotine-containing products yourself.
Note that, at the border, it is the individual customs officer who assesses the reasonability of considering the goods as being for private use.
Limits
How much tobacco may I bring back?
From another EU country
For your/your family’s¹ private use.
From a country outside the EU
Any one of the following:– 200 cigarettes;– 100 cigarillos;– 50 cigars;– 250 g of smoking tobacco; or,– a proportional selection of these tobacco products³.
Do I have to pay any charges on the tobacco?
From another EU country
No.
From a country outside the EU
Only if you want to bring in more than the quantities of tobacco above.
How much oral snuff (snus) may I bring back?
From another EU country
For your/your family’s¹ private use.
From a country outside the EU
Up to a value of SEK 5,000 for those travelling on an aircraft or ferry in commercial traffic; up to SEK 3,500 for other travellers.
Example: If you are travelling home to Sweden on an aircraft and have bought clothes for SEK 3,000 you may only bring oral snuff to a value of SEK 2,000, since the total value of what you bring back may not exceed SEK 5,000.
How much nicotine-containing e-liquid may I bring in?
From another EU country
20 millilitres.
From a country outside the EU
Up to a value of SEK 5,000 for those travelling on an aircraft or ferry in commercial traffic; up to SEK 3,500 for other travellers.
Example: If you are travelling home to Sweden on an aircraft and have bought clothes for SEK 3,000 you may only bring oral snuff to a value of SEK 2,000, since the total value of what you bring back may not exceed SEK 5,000.
Read more about buying e-cigarettes and refills when travelling abroad.
What quantities of other nicotine-containing products (e.g. nicotine gum and nicotine spray) may I bring in?
From another EU country
200 grams.
From a country outside the EU
Up to a value of SEK 5,000 for those travelling on an aircraft or ferry in commercial traffic; up to SEK 3,500 for other travellers.
Example: If you are travelling home to Sweden on an aircraft and have bought clothes for SEK 3,000 you may only bring oral snuff to a value of SEK 2,000, since the total value of what you bring back may not exceed SEK 5,000.
Do I have to pay any charges on e-liquids that contain nicotine or on other nicotine-containing products?
From another EU country
Only if you want to bring in more than the quantities above.
From a country outside the EU
Only if you want to bring in more than the quantities above.
Read more about buying e-cigarettes and refills when travelling abroad.
Buying tobacco in another EU country
If you buy tobacco in another EU country, you can bring in the quantity of tobacco that is regarded as being for your/your family’s private use.
Exceptions
Certain places outside the EU’s fiscal territory (e.g. Åland or the Canary Isles) are, as regards tobacco purchases, classed as being outside the EU.
In assessing whether the tobacco is for your/your family’s private use, Swedish Customs uses, amongst other things, the following refernce levels²:
- 800 cigarettes;
- 400 cigarillos;
- 200 cigars; and
- 1 kilo of smoking tobacco.
If the quantity of tobacco you are bringing in is above these quantities, you are responsible for showing that the quantity is reasonable for your/your family’s own use. The quantity of tobacco is not the sole determiner used by customs officers in assessing whether the tobacco is really intended for your private use. Swedish Customs assesses all the circumstances.
Buying tobacco or other nicotine-containing products in a country outside the EU
If you are resident in Sweden, the right to bring tobacco into Sweden without paying charges is conditional on you being abroad for more than 20 hours or making the return journey with an aircraft on a commercial flight.
If you wish to bring in more than the charge-free quantity, you must pay customs duty and taxes. You must also declare it to Swedish Customs by choosing the red lane when crossing the border.
Declaring your goods to Swedish Customs
Tobacco
Only certain quantities of tobacco may be brought into Sweden if you buy the tobacco in a country outside the EU. You may bring in any one of the following:
- 200 cigarettes or
- 100 cigarillos or
- 50 cigars or
- 250 g of smoking tobacco or
- 250 g of other tobacco or
- a proportional selection of these tobacco products³.
Tobacco tax and nicotine tax
On any tobacco and nicotine-containing products above the charge-free quantity that you bring in from a country outside the EU, you must pay customs duty and taxes. On any e-liquid and other nicotine-containing products above the charge-free quantity that you bring in, you must pay the nicotine tax, even if you buy them in another EU country.
Tobacco
- Cigarettes: customs duty, SEK 0.34 each; tax, SEK 2.80 each.
- Cigars: customs duty, SEK 0.86 each; tax, SEK 41.77 each.
- Smoking tobacco: customs duty, SEK 428 per kg; tax, SEK 3,843 per kg.
- Other tobacco: customs duty, SEK 428 per kg; tax, SEK 3,843 per kg.
- Oral snuff: customs duty, SEK 104 per kg; tax, SEK 855 per kg.
E-liquid
- From a country outside the EU: customs duty, SEK 320 per litre; tax, SEK 3,820 per litre.
- From another EU country: tax, SEK 2,020 per litre.
- Highly concentrated e-liquids from a country outside the EU: customs duty, SEK 320 per litre; tax, SEK 6,240 per litre.
- Highly concentrated e-liquids from another EU country: tax, SEK 4,040 per litre.
Other nicotine containing products
- From a country outside the EU: customs duty, SEK 390 per kg; tax, SEK 1,282 per kg.
- From another EU country: tax, SEK 202 per kg.
These rules apply even when you buy tobacco and nicotine-containing products outside the EU’s fiscal territory (e.g. from Åland and the Canary Isles). This is so even though said countries are, in other connections, classed as being part of the EU.
Definitions
¹ Family is those closest to you and living in the same home (e.g. wife or husband). In this connection, Swedish Customs refers to a decision of the Skåne and Blekinge appeal court (case number B2328-04, 20 April 2006). In the absence of a ruling from Sweden’s supreme court, said decision is regarded as precedential.
² The quantities are set out in Chapter 2, Section 13 of the Act on Tobacco Tax (2022:155).
³ A traveller can choose a smaller quantity of cigarettes so that he/she can also bring in, duty-free, cigars or other tobacco products (e.g. 100 cigarettes and 25 cigars).
