Bulgarian customs officers at Bourgas Airport BCP seized over 2500 boxes of cigarettes from the luggage of five passengers
The customs officers of the Bourgas Airport BCP seized 2569 boxes (51 380 pieces) of cigarettes from the luggage of five passengers, Bulgarian citizens.
The five passengers (two women and three men) traveled between 31 March and 3 April 2023 on flights to London, UK. They passed through a “green corridor” – nothing to declare, after which a customs inspection of their luggage was carried out, in joint actions with the officers of the Border Police. In the course of the checks, the customs inspectors found 700, 520, 500, 450 and 399 packs of cigarettes of different brands in the luggage of each of the five passengers. The tobacco products have a valid Bulgarian excise label, but they were transported in commercial quantities and in violation of customs legislation. Acts have been drawn up against the five Bulgarian citizens for the established administrative violations.
Only in the first three months of the year, the customs officers of the Bourgas Airport BCP confiscated 244 740 cigarettes (12 237 packs) from passengers’ luggage. All offenders are Bulgarian citizens and traveled to UK, and the cigarettes they carried were in commercial quantities.
595 120 cigarettes (29 756 packs) were also detained in 2022 during customs checks of passengers’ luggage at Bourgas Airport. The seized tobacco products have a Bulgarian excise label, but they were transported in violation of customs and excise legislation.
TD Bourgas Customs reminds passengers traveling by air that they can take up to 40 packs of cigarettes with a Bulgarian banderol out of the country if they are traveling to another EU member state, and up to 10 packs of cigarettes if they are traveling to a third country. Travelers should also familiarize themselves with the rules in the host country, where limits may be more restrictive. Passengers carrying quantities in excess of the limit are subject to a fine, and the offending cigarettes are impounded.
