Brown to propose sevenfold duty-free allowance hike

Gavin Lipsith

Print Article E-Mail Article E-Mail Author

The UK Chancellor's budget announcement will please extra-EU retailers

UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown is to unveil plans to increase extra-EU duty-free allowances from £145 ($274) to about £1,000 ($1,890) in tomorrow's (March 16) budget announcement, according to local reports. As reported by RavenFox.com on January 17, Brown has already sent a letter to European Commissioner for taxation and Customs Laszlo Kovacs requesting an increase in allowances for travellers returning to the European Union.

The move would mean that anyone travelling to destinations outside the EU could avoid VAT and duty charges on purchases such as clothing, jewellery and electronics. The plan will need agreement from the EU to go ahead, because the current limit, which has not been changed since 1994, is set in European law.