Clarifications on US Import Restrictions of Ancient Coins

So, as many of you already know, I will be studying abroad this semester in France. (In fact, I leave this Sunday!) While I am in Europe, I plan on buying at least some coins. Before I make the potential mistake of buying the wrong coins in the wrong place, I'd like some clarifications.

First off, I will not be buying any ancient coins in Italy and Greece. There is a lot of red tape to cross, and I don't want to get held up or worse because of coins. I won't even bring any of my coins with me as pocket pieces. The only things I would be buying would be fakes as mementos.

As for the Import Restrictions (called Memorandums of Understanding), I've read that any restricted coins can be legally imported into the US as long as one can prove they were exported from the origin country before 2011. Most of what I would be buying are Chinese coins from a collector who has built his collection prior to 2011, so that should be okay. How would I go about proving Roman/Greek coins bought in France or England were exported prior to 2011? (It seems that Roman coins from after 211 BC are legal to import anyway, which I what I would most likely be buying). Would Germany's export laws affect any purchases made there? Medieval coins seem to be exempt from import restrictions.

What happens when I go through US customs after coming back from Europe? Do I need to fill out forms beforehand, or is everything done on the spot? Are there usually fees of some sort?

If any of my questions are confusing, ask me to clarify.

And before you call me insane, I will not be focused only on coins during my travels. They will be infrequent side stops as they fall into my path. Maybe I will go to a coin show, but who knows. I just want to play things safe and legal.

 

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Then you ARE insane.

Here's what I would do: buy a few coins early on and try shipping them to a US address. Make sure you include a valid return address in case they get sent back. If there's any issues, you should have time to work them out.

Assuming that everything goes OK, ship any coins you want to bring home rather than carrying them on you through customs.

 

I believe the only coins I've purchased while overseas was in Croatia. To be honest, I never thought about US Customs. I never thought about any restrictions. What I worried about was if I placed them in my luggage might they get stolen? So I carried them in my pocket and thought nothing more about them till I got to my home. Now that I may know a little better about restrictions, I'm not sure what else I might do other than to do the same. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

 

I am not a lawyer.

Several dealers have told me it is easier to mail coins to the US than to hand-carry them and declare them and possibly have to give them up waiting for an expert inspection.

When I receive coins from Europe they usually come with a paper that says

19 USC section 2606 not applicable. We certify that either the enclosed items are not “Italian, Bulgarian, or Greek coins as defined under 19 USC section 2606” or, if they are, they were exported from Italy before the effective date of January 19, 2011 or Greece before the effective date of November 21, 2011”. To the best of our knowledge, the coins are not cultural property documented as appertaining to the inventory of a museum or religious or secular monument or similar institution in Italy, Greece, or Bulgaria. Consequently all the material in this package is exempt from the import restrictions of 19 USC section 2606 and my be freely imported into the USA.

(The date for China is January 14, 2009. I am not sure the date for Italy is correct above.)

You should only buy coins that were sold outside China in 2008 or earlier and you could include something similar when you send it to yourself. You should declare the actual price you paid on the customs form.

 

As Ed points out, most European dealers simply include a statement, nothing definitive. I've received some auction lots from the largest houses in Europe with a simple one line statement. I've had nothing held or inspected as yet.

 

I brought my entire collection in my backpack from the UK to the US. No issues.

 

We all have our stories I suppose. Back in the early 90's I bought a group of 300 Gallic Empire antoninianii (maybe it was 100, I dont remember) and brought them in my backpack. Only problem I had was entering the US where they had a time deciding if these were 'current money' and if so, did it warrant any duty for transferring cash between countries! Took about an hour as I remember, but ultimately they let me go. Things are different now....

 

I agree with Ed and Ken- mail them to yourself with a written declaration as per Ed's post.