Accessibility

Font size

Filters

Highlight

Colour

Zoom

Government of Gibraltar Logo Government of Gibraltar Logo

HM Customs

Travelling to Gibraltar

You need to go through a Red or Green Channel.

Please remember that...

Customs carry out selective checks in both channels for the following prohibited or restricted goods: drugs, firearms, ammunition, offensive weapons, (e.g. flick knives etc), explosives, fireworks, indecent or obscene material, fast motor launches, raw and worked ivory, rigid inflatable boats of six metres or more, tobacco (cigarettes) in commercial quantities.

Goods you buy outside Gibraltar

When entering Gibraltar you will pass through Customs and must declare everything in excess of the duty free allowances obtained outside Gibraltar. There are allowances for goods that can be imported free of duty by persons entering Gibraltar and who have not been in Gibraltar for at least 24 hours immediately preceding the time of such entry and not more than once in any calendar month:

Duty Free

No relief shall be afforded to any person under the age of 17 years in respect of tobacco products, alcoholic beverages or perfume.

Other goods

Articles of any other description up to a total value of £32.

NOTE: Persons who regularly enter or return to Gibraltar are not entitled to duty free importation. (Regularly is defined as persons who enter or return to Gibraltar more than once in any calendar month).

Motorists

* A visitor may import his car without payment of duty provided: he is not a resident; he intends only to stay temporarily in Gibraltar; it is being imported for his own use (or that of some other entitled visitor); and he will take it with him when he leaves.

* Drivers of vehicles entering Gibraltar must be in possession of a green card valid for any EU country; or UK Certificate of Motor Insurance; or Certificate of Motor Insurance issued in accordance with Gibraltar law (no motor insurance facilities are available at Entry points). Current registration documents and driving licences are also a requirement.

* Caravans may only be imported, provided a licence has been previously obtained from the office of the Collector of Customs.

Special procedures

Purchase of motor vehicles on export plates:

There are two regimes under which a person may purchase and register a motor vehicle in Gibraltar on export plates. Vehicles bought new in Gibraltar from a motor vehicle trader by bona fide visitors and vehicles bought new in Gibraltar to be exported from Gibraltar attract a nil rate of duty if certain conditions are met. These conditions are contained in Sections 20 and 21 of the Traffic (Licensing and Registration) Regulations.

Specimen of application form to be filled in by the applicant under Section 20 of the Traffic (Licensing and Registration) Regulations;

Application for G registration under Section 20

Specimen of application form to be filled in by the applicant under Section 21 of the Traffic (Licensing and Registration) Regulations;

Application for G registration under Section 21

For further information please contact any of the licensed motor vehicle dealers in Gibraltar or HM Customs, Gibraltar.

Smuggling

Smugglers are individuals or groups who bring products into Gibraltar for resale without payment of duty. Smuggling is a crime. Smugglers evade the payment of duty and undercut legitimate trade. Uncontrolled smuggling could result in revenue shortfalls, which would have to be made up by you, the taxpayer.

Never carry anything into Gibraltar for somebody else.

Never bring prohibited goods into Gibraltar.

If you are driving, make sure that everyone travelling with you knows what goods are prohibited or subject to import duty. If you smuggle goods in a car, the car may be seized.

A pet may be tame, but rabies is a killer. Don't even think of smuggling an animal into Gibraltar. It could be carrying rabies and the consequences could be disastrous.

If you are in any doubt, go to the customs inquiry point.

There are heavy penalties for smuggling

Drug smuggling is a problem that faces everybody either directly as the family or friends of addicts, or indirectly through drug-related crime. Customs believe that the best way to prevent the distribution of drugs is to stop the drugs at the point of importation before they are broken down into smaller quantities for distribution and sale.

Although customs allocate substantial human and other resources to tackling the drugs threat the public's help is needed to seize more.

You can help stop smugglers bringing drugs into Gibraltar by reporting suspicious activity.

DRUGS: if you see anything suspicious or if you have any information on drug smuggling tell a Customs officer or phone 20077677 or 20079988.

If you have a complaint

If you have a complaint which the staff, frontier, port or airport cannot sort out, you should contact the Collector of Customs who is the head of the department.

The address is:

Custom House,
Waterport,
Gibraltar.
Telephone: 20078879 
Fax: 20078362
Email: hmcustoms@gibraltar.gov.gi