Living near Basel I can cycle to Germany (easily) or France (longer) with my bike trailer and cross into both and back withput entering a Zoll! Now I'm not considering smuggling but what is cheaper in the 2 countries (certainly meat!) and where can i find my daily limits?

Thanks

It used to be on the site in English, but here it is in German:

http://www.ezv.admin.ch/zollinfo_pri...x.html?lang=de

Oh, and I recently got a 7 Euro gift certificate from Geant for using their s'miles card. But, you've got to be able to read French to fill out the form.

Francais - c'est facile mais malheuresement j'habite en Suisse ou on parle allemand!!!

Pardonez Moi. ;-)

Click on the Francais tab in the upper right where it has the languages and you'll get the French version.

Hi there...

Next time, can you please also include an English translation, so those who don't speak French can understand?

Policy

BTW, the shops in Germany are better set up for getting the VAT back. But the crowds are smaller in France.

Can you even get your VAT back in France? I have looked a few times into this, but the stores all have very high thresholds for tax back, not worthwhile for the bits of shopping I do in France. I just go for their cheap wine and more interesting selection...

Yeah, you can get your VAT back, but you're right about the shops not printing the forms up for you unless you spend quite a bit. So much that it only makes sense for a couple or a family to do the VAT thing.

I agree with you. I'll often pick up a couple bottles of wine. And the selection is pretty cool. I like the low-fat Brie and Bleu cheeses. They also have these big containers of really nice dried herbs.

The grape juice at Geant is good and cheap though. Way cheaper than here in CH. But you're only allowed to bring 3 litres per person across the border.

I live in Basel and I do my food shopping in Geant almost every week (the Smiles card is useful too). I asked once about claiming back the tax but yes you have to spend quite a bit (over 60 euros?) to claim anything.

I sometimes go to Weil am Rhein; lots of people seem to be queuing for the green forms after they shop. Does anyone know the percent you can claim back and if it is cumlative? I once queued up but since I usually don't spend too much at any one time (I am by bike), it amounted to only 1 euro! It seems silly to go back the next time and ask for your 1 euro back. What if you brought along 20 green forms at the same time? Would they be fine with that?

Second, is claiming the tax permit-specific or restricted to EU citizens? I have an American friend who wants to buy something of around 100 euros in Germany, but she is living in Basel only for 1 year, so I don't think she has a B-permit. Would she be able to claim anything back?

You can present as many forms as you want at once - as long as they're from the same store and within the time frame (six months, I believe). They just take them like cash at the till.

You need to have a residence permit for Switzerland to get it stamped at the border, but any one will do - L, B, C, etc. are all OK. Citizenship doesn't matter, just your permit.

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I like france for the variety, things you can't get in Germany or Switzerland, but I prefer Germany (Hieber, to be precise) for shopping.

France has Pelforth beer and Monster Munch chips; these alone are worth the trip! Also, France closes later than Basel and is usually less-crowded than Germany. The shop with the latest opening hours I think would be Mueller (?) in Weil, which shuts at 10pm. And three floors below you will find Aldi, by far the cheapest place for food and drink.