Duty free shops at airport [duplicate]

Duty free shops at airport [duplicate] - Silver Plane on Display in Museum With People

What exactly does duty free mean at the various airports? Does it mean that the items are cheaper because they have no tax/duty applied on it OR does it mean the item would "not count" for the free allowance amount at our home country?

Just to add, I checked the prices of various items at Doha airport duty free shops (for iPhones, perfumes, etc) but did not find much price difference from what is available in India? So wanted to understand.



Best Answer

From the Wikipedia Page

Duty-free shops (or stores) are retail outlets that are exempt from the payment of certain local or national taxes and duties, on the requirement that the goods sold will be sold to travelers who will take them out of the country. Which products can be sold duty-free vary by jurisdiction, as well as how they can be sold, and the process of calculating the duty or refund the duty component.

So what the exemption means vary from country to country and is based on the laws of that country and administrative divisions within the country.

What does it imply in terms of prices? May not be much, for example Alcohol prices in Duty Free Shops in the US may be more expensive then some of the prices on the same Alcohol in a different locality. Tobacco Products may be less expensive then some jurisdictions but more expensive then others and so on. Reasons for that vary but the situation you saw in Doha is entirely reasonable.




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Which Duty-Free is the cheapest?

The overall cheapest The Points Guy found that overall, the cheapest international airports for duty-free shopping are the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, the Singapore Changi Airport and the Owen Roberts International Airport in the Cayman Islands. The most expensive international airport is in Santorini, Greece.

Which airport has the most duty-free shops?

Among the five most popular airports for duty-free shopping in the world are:
  • London Heathrow: ...
  • Dubai International Airport: ...
  • Amsterdam Schiphol Airport: ...
  • Singapore Changi Airport: ...
  • Incheon International Airport Seoul:


Can I buy duty-free on arrival?

Some countries allow arriving international travelers to use duty-free shops before leaving the airport, but the U.S. does not. Returning U.S. travelers can buy duty-free only at foreign departure airports.



Dubai airport DXB chocolate shop duty free shop




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Images: Chris F, David Brtan, Riccardo, Naim Benjelloun