I'll be flying from the USA back to Germany. I have bought several gifts for family.
This includes:
Is this going to cause a problem at the airport. We are flying from Charleston to Washington then to Germany. I have heard US customs sometimes cause problems. What are the things I can do to avoid such a hassle?
The rules for importing goods to Germany as a traveller are here. Since none of the special categories apply to the goods you've brought (ie, they are not tobacco or alcohol) and you are travelling by air, the duty free allowance is the value of €430.
This is the total value of goods that you may bring in duty free. For any goods that exceed the total value you must pay duty on the total value of the items which exceed €430. By way of example, let's say the total value of the makeup, clothes, wallets and perfumes is €400, and the laptop is worth €500. In this case, you can bring everything except the laptop in according to your duty free allowance, but you will need to pay duty on the total value of the laptop.
The calculation of duty is quite complex. But the customs officers will do it for you. Assuming you are over the duty free limit you will need to pass through the red channel when entering Germany to declare your goods.
