A 39-year-old woman who flew in from Bangkok has been sentenced to three months in prison and fined HK$1,000 for importing 11,600 duty-not-paid cigarettes through Hong Kong International Airport. The West Kowloon Magistrates’ Court handed down the custodial penalty on 7 October after she pleaded guilty to charges under the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance. Customs officers found the cigarettes, valued at HK$52,000, concealed in her checked luggage during a random inspection on 7 September. Officials said the stiff sentence sends a deterrent message as smuggling syndicates increasingly rely on “ant trafficking” – paying individual passengers to carry small consignments that may escape X-ray detection. Duty-free allowances for arriving travellers remain at 19 cigarettes, one cigar or 25 grams of cigar/cigarette tobacco. Business travellers who smoke are reminded that personal stocks beyond these limits must be declared and tax paid immediately on arrival. The maximum penalty for cigarette smuggling is HK$2 million and seven years’ imprisonment. Companies arranging group travel should brief staff that “gifts” purchased overseas are not exempt from duty rules.
Source: Hong Kong Customs press release
