Imports & Customs — Netherlands

Goods you bought outside the EU come in tax-free up to EUR 430 per person. Cross that line and the sting is in the detail: duty and VAT are charged on the FULL value of the item that tipped you over, not on the amount you went over by. Buy a EUR 1,000 watch and you pay on the whole EUR 1,000. You cannot pool allowances with the people you are travelling with, and second-hand goods and gifts count the same as new purchases.

Douane publishes no fine amount for exceeding the goods allowance, stating only: "U bent verplicht om aangifte te doen... Doet u geen aangifte? Dan kunt u een boete krijgen en moet u de verschuldigde belasting betalen." A EUR 1,000 minimum fine plus possible imprisonment IS published — but only for failing to declare EUR 10,000 or more in cash or gold, a separate obligation that must not be read across to goods.

You cannot bring meat, milk, cheese or any other dairy from outside the EU into the Netherlands — no minimum quantity, no exceptions for the sandwich in your bag. The ban is to keep animal disease out and it applies flat, whatever the amount. The only carve-out is powdered baby milk and medical foods: sealed, unopened, shelf-stable and up to 2 kg. Chocolate and sweets are fine, and you may bring up to 20 kg of fish and 2 kg of packaged honey.

Douane publishes no fine amount, stating only that declaration is compulsory and that non-declaration can bring a fine plus seizure: "U bent verplicht om aangifte te doen. Als u geen aangifte doet, kunt u een boete krijgen... Dan worden niet-toegestane producten in beslag genomen."