Chinese Andorran Resident Detained for Smuggling €130K Undeclared Luxury Goods

A 47-year-old Chinese resident of Andorra was detained on Tuesday afternoon at the Runer river border crossing after customs officials found she had entered the country without declaring luxury goods valued at around 130,000 euros. She was released the following morning on instructions from the prosecutor's office and must now appear before a judge when summoned.

The woman, who has lived in Andorra for three years, was driving a Porsche Cayenne when stopped by an Andorran customs officer. She denied having anything to declare. A search uncovered an 80,000-euro ring, several Louis Vuitton handbags—including one worth 3,300 euros—and various pieces of high-end designer clothing. She had obtained tax-free status on the items at Spanish customs to avoid VAT but did not report them upon arrival in Andorra, evading the 4.5% general IGI tax that would have totalled about 6,750 euros.

Andorran law requires declaration of imports exceeding 300 euros to avoid administrative fines. Values over 75,000 euros with fraudulent intent constitute a minor socio-economic criminal offence, as in this case, where police took custody after customs referred the matter. She faced charges related to a socio-economic order offence and potential smuggling for bypassing customs controls. Penalties under the Penal Code for tax fraud above this threshold include up to three years in prison and fines up to four times the defrauded amount.

Police held her overnight before her release on Wednesday morning. Authorities do not rule out investigating whether she has engaged in similar undeclared imports previously. Officials note that such evasion, often targeting hard-to-detect items like luxury jewellery and watches, undermines fiscal fairness, distorts competition, and damages reputations with tax authorities and society.