I got the regular “sweep around with a feather duster” at the french tunnel controls on friday. The bloke asked me if i had anything to declare… Me not knowing any different replied " a case of red, a case of white, and 3 packs of golden virginia…
Ahhhh monsieur! yew ar oveer le leeemits!
you wot marra? 12 bottles of plonk and 30 gv■■?
mai oui… from last year the limit is now 200 cigs OR 1 kilo tabac…
Well you could `ve knocked me down with a feather!
This time i let you go but next time… 
Are france still part of europe? or just when they bloody want to be?
what country did you buy them in ?
Tobacco Restrictions for eight Member States
From 1 May 2004, the UK is maintaining limits on the amount of cigarettes and some tobacco products that travellers are able to bring in to the UK for own use from eight Member States, without paying UK duty.The limits are:
200 cigarettes from Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia;
200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 100 cigarillos or 250g of tobacco from the Czech Republic; and
200 cigarettes or 250g of tobacco from Estonia.
Anyone who is carrying more than the limits should pay UK duty on those goods by entering the Customs Red Channel or by using the Red Point telephone. If travellers enter the Customs Blue Channel with more than the limits, then all of their tobacco may be seized.
bigandy:
what country did you buy them in ?Tobacco Restrictions for eight Member States
From 1 May 2004, the UK is maintaining limits on the amount of cigarettes and some tobacco products that travellers are able to bring in to the UK for own use from eight Member States, without paying UK duty.The limits are:
200 cigarettes from Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia;
200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 100 cigarillos or 250g of tobacco from the Czech Republic; and
200 cigarettes or 250g of tobacco from Estonia.
Anyone who is carrying more than the limits should pay UK duty on those goods by entering the Customs Red Channel or by using the Red Point telephone. If travellers enter the Customs Blue Channel with more than the limits, then all of their tobacco may be seized.
Belgium 
I have in the past been told that the limits for people who are travelling in the course of their work (e.g. truck drivers) are not the same as those which apply to tourists/trippers. I do not know if this is true but this tale would seem to bear it out.
He thought you were a Frenchy Jon. 
JB:
…
Are france still part of europe? or just when they bloody want to be?
…Surprised you need to ask…
Harry Monk:
I have in the past been told that the limits for people who are travelling in the course of their work (e.g. truck drivers) are not the same as those which apply to tourists/trippers. I do not know if this is true but this tale would seem to bear it out.
Ive been told that as well, by a French customs officer coming into France at the Swiss border of St. Louis, at the barrier where you jump out and put your ticket under the window, she came out and asked if i had anything to declare, i had around 3000 ■■■■, that id bought at the duty free shop in Patras in Greece a few days earlier. I told her i had a carton of 200 which had around 140 left, she said thats too much… the limit for non tourists (in other words drivers) was 1 packet of 20! 
I told her it was my last European trip (it wasnt)and she let me off, saying if you do come here again, make sure you got no more than 1 packet.
Is an owner driver a non tourist ,if so should they check out the diesel as it costs more than the wine…
Same thing here JB, a carton of 200 and we burn the rest he told me. He even made a big play of writing my registration number on a piece of paper
I think it is still 2 packets in Germany for truck drivers, It use to be a certain pull at Schwanenhaus if you stopped for fuel or a coffee
According to the very nice lady at the tobbaco shop in Adinkerke the 200 limit is for Frog nationals only. Even the man at route 66 backs this up.
Ben9:
According to the very nice lady at the tobbaco shop in Adinkerke the 200 limit is for Frog nationals only. Even the man at route 66 backs this up.
Christine Keeler 
Well she would say that wouldn’t she 
I was shopping in Irun a few weeks ago and had 5 sleeves and walking back to my truck a Spanish Customs officer asked me if I was heading into Spain or into France, I told him I was on my way home, he then told me I would have problems if I was stopped by French customs officers as the limit from Spain into France was now set at 800 cigarettes. This limit applies to anyone, not just Truck drivers…
I think the French make the rules up as they please…It seems they have got stricter since their prices hit the roof.
Earlier in the year I was stopped on the French Belgium border and was told it was 3700, by Duoane (?) man. I was not in a car no.