Brexit: Moving Household Goods to France

As the UK is no longer a member of the European Union, some goods now need to be declared to French customs and customs duties and VAT paid on some items.

The rules differ, depending on whether you are moving goods to your main home

to France or you are moving items to a second home in France.

These are also early days with the adoption of customs practices from the UK to France, and the evidence to date indicates that even customs officials are having to learn the ropes.

Moving Goods to Main Home in France
If you are relocating to France or you live in France and you are bringing goods to your home, you are in principle exempt from paying taxes on personal goods that you import.

The exemption applies if you have been living in the UK (or another country outside the EU) for at least 12 months and you have owned the goods you wish to import for at least 6 months before the shipping date.

You need to bring over the belongings you wish to import within 12 months of relocating to France, but they can be brought over in one or multiple trips.

You cannot sell or rent items for one year after importing them to France, but just how even the all-seeing eye of the French State is able to enforce this rule we can only wonder at!

When goods are being transported you must provide two copies of an inventory of goods and furniture listing their value and a signed declaration.

The level of details required by French customs officials does vary, as some of you are reporting that merely listing the boxes by category of goods - kitchen equipment, garden equipment etc - has been sufficient.

You also need to produce documents proving you have lived in the UK and you are moving to France. A rates or tax bill should be sufficient for the former, whilst for the latter a copy of the property deeds/notaire certificate of ownership and utilities contract/bill would suffice.

Strictly speaking, you may also need documentation (such as receipts) proving that you have owned the goods you wish to import for more than six months. You can more easily accomplish this by a signed statement, called a 'certificat de non-cession' that confirms it is all your own property. There are many examples of this form on-line used by removal companies. Once again, provided all you are bringing over to France are a standard load of household possessions, and you are self-evidently moving home, customs officials will not insist on a receipt for every item. Only if you have a highly valuable piece might it be useful to have some evidence of ownership with you.

Border officials in France have available x-ray equipment to examine a vehicle if necessary, so the contents of your load can be examined quite easily if they decide to do it.

Some products are excluded from the tax exemption. These include products that are normally for commercial use such as raw materials, professional goods, alcohol or tobacco.

Alcohol and tobacco duty-free limits per person aged 17+ from the UK to France are as follows:

Cigarettes - 200 cigarettes (1 carton)
Cigarillos- 100 cigarillos
Cigars -50 cigars
Smoking tobacco -250 grams
Still (non-sparkling) wine - 4 litres
Beer - 16 litres
Beverages with more than 22% ABV - 1 litre
Beverages with up to 22% ABV - 2 litres