Tobacco products: sell duty-free or duty paid
Find out how you can sell duty-free or duty-paid tobacco products through airlines, on ships, in export stores and in duty-free shops.
Find out about selling duty-free or duty paid alcohol and tobacco products from 1 January 2021.
Overview
In most cases, to sell duty-free or duty-paid tobacco you need to be approved by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). You’ll also need to follow specific rules and procedures to sell duty-free or duty-paid tobacco products:
- on airlines or ships travelling between European Union (EU) countries
- in export shops to passengers travelling to somewhere outside the EU
- to aircraft for duty-free sales
- as an airline or agent to passengers and crew travelling to somewhere outside the EU
Operators of airlines or ships travelling between EU countries
You must be an HMRC approved Registered Mobile Operator to sell tobacco products to passengers on board for them to take away.
Usually, if the sale is made after a certain point in the journey, you must account for duty to the tax authority in the destination country. You’ll be credited for UK duty that you’ve already paid on the products.
If you only sell tobacco products for on-board consumption, you don’t need to register as a Registered Mobile Operator.
You should also be aware there are daily limits that apply to duty-free tobacco allowances for passengers and crew on-board ships.
Export shops
To sell duty-free tobacco products to passengers travelling to destinations outside the EU, you need to be approved by HMRC to operate an export shop.
An export shop is an excise warehouse that’s been HMRC approved to receive and store duty suspended goods intended for sale to people travelling outside the EU.
Export shops must be sited at an HMRC designated port or airport, usually in the departure lounge after security controls. They can hold tobacco in duty suspension for sale to passengers travelling to a destination outside the EU.
Supply tobacco products to aircraft for duty-free sales
To supply tobacco products in duty suspension to aircraft for duty-free sales through an excise warehouse, you need approval to operate an aircraft store floor.
Duty-free aircraft stores
As an airline operator or agent, you can sell tobacco products free of Tobacco Duty to passengers or crew.
The tobacco products must be:
- sold for to passengers and crew to take away on flights to destinations outside the EU
- supplied to you from an aircraft store floor
You also need to follow certain rules and procedures.