Cuban import duties rise

Tourists will be largely unaffected by an August 2012 increase in Cuban import duties.

Visitors are allowed to take in items for their own use (not resale) and up to $4,999 in cash without having to declare them on a Customs declaration form. These include cameras, laptops, DVD and CD players, radios, iPods, cell phones, flash memory and jewelry. Duties are not charged on the first 25 kilos (55 pounds) of each passenger’s luggage.

However, for people taking in more than 25 kilos of goods, the Customs fee now equals 100% of the value for goods valued between $50 and $500 and 200% of the value for goods worth more than $500. The purpose of these new fees is to reduce the number of goods being brought in by relatives and other travelers for cheap resale in nongovernmental stores.