A couple of questions about buying cigarettes online: with Camel cigarettes, are the ones made in Russia different from the ones made in the U.S.? If so, how - different taste? And most importantly, is it legal to import these cigarettes into the United States (for personal use)?
I bought cigs online once. Can’t remember the site, sorry, but I believe they were in Switzerland.
There was a big long FAQ on the site about if it’s legal or not. Basically yes it is as long as you don’t resell them. It’s the same as buying cigs at a duty-free shop in Canada and taking them back to the US. You can only buy so many at once and you can’t resell them.
The site also talked about how even if you purchase more than one carton, each carton gets shipped separate. Something about how customs won’t check packages under a certain size or whatever…
As for the taste, I did not like mine. I do believe the blend is different. I got Winston Lights and my dad got Camel Filtered. My Winstons were harsh, more like a Camel.
My dad, who is a 3-pack-a-day guy and hordes cigarette coupons liked the idea of getting them 1/2 price, but he disliked the taste of his Camels so much that we never bought them again.
It wouldn’t hurt to try ordering one carton and deciding for yourself what you think of the taste. AFAIK there’s nothing illegal about this, so it’s worth a shot.
Somehow, if the site is emphasizing ways in which you can get around customs, it doesn’t seem like it’s legal.
Maybe it’s more to avoid a hassle, doesn’t mean it’s illegal.
Well if you don’t believe me about the legality, I think this is the FAQ I read. Not the same site but it appears to be the same FAQ or pretty close to it.
All the info you need should be on that FAQ.
I’ve tried to buy cigarettes online twice, from the UK …
The first time was from a site which also had an FAQ explaining how nothing they did was illegal, and why … but that HM Customs & Excise occasionally (illegally) confiscated packages sent from them. They promised that in that eventuality they would replace the lost package. A few weeks after placing my order I received a letter from HM C&E - they had confiscated my cigarettes. I sent the letter to the site to claim a replacement … and never heard from them again. :rolleyes:
The second time (approx 4 years later) I thought I’d risk it again, with a different site. Only half of my order ever arrived, and they never replied to emails / letters … :rolleyes:
Guess I won’t bother again. :mad:
My parents routinely do this, and they haven’t had any problems (I’ll try to dig up the site.) as of yet. They typicallly order about 5 or 6 cartons at a time, and they all make it here. They did, however switch brands, probably because marlboros online are even cheaper than the dorals they smoked before.
You’re allowed to bring 200 cigarettes into the US duty-free. Yesmoke ships the cigarettes in packages with no more than 200 cigarettes in them.
You can order x amount and they will arrive at different times in packages of 200.
As far as the taste goes, if you get Marboro Lights made in the Philippines they will be much harsher then the ones made in the EU. The tobacoo is blended for local taste.
Indian reservation websites.
Do you want one carton or a hundred cartons. No problem. The cigarettes come from the plants in the South that manufacture them. Same as you would buy at your local store.
Here, in NY, which has the highest tax on tobacco in the nation, a carton of cigarettes will run you about $80.00. The reservation price…no taxes charged…is $30.00. The tax Nazis here in NY have been attempting to shut the Indians down, but, the Indians keep winning in court. The one change that came about was that common carriers (UPS and FedEx) won’t ship them anymore. The only carrier now in the USPS.(ironic?) I spoke to a guy at the website I use, and he told me that UPS and FedEx need to know what they are shipping. If it’s cigarettes, no go. The post office, on the other hand, doesn’t ask.(go figure).
I get my cigs through a NY reservation (www.acornsmokeshop.com) and they’re shipped UPS. I had to sign for the first delivery to prove I was of age but after that they got dropped off at the back door like anything else.
I’ve gotten camel lights from switzerland before, they didn’t look or taste at all the same. They seemed *lighter]/i], and I would inhale them more deeply and hold the smoke longer to compensate, resulting in a more coughing and sore throats.
Also, the packs were light blue and there was no camel cash.
But I did receive all 5 cartons with no problems, took about 4 weeks IIRC. At the time I was getting them sent to Chicago for $19 delivered which was great compared to the $50 I was paying there (down here I get cartons of real camel lights for $23).
Are you in NY?, shipping out of NY to another state is a different story.
Nope, I’m not in NY. I went throught the order process on their web site and see that USPS is indeed the only shipping option for NY (and Maine, I believe). All other places are ok for UPS though so there must be another reason besides “UPS won’t ship cigs.”