El Salvador customs
Apply for visa
Free import
• Travelers' baggage for personal or professional use during the trip, not for sale: clothing, jewelry, toiletries, medicines, sports equipment, a camera, a mobile phone, a laptop and similar portable items.
• Toiletries and perfume: up to 6 units of each type or 20 units in total.
• Adult travelers: 500 g of tobacco products in any form, 5 L of wine, spirits or liquor, and up to 2 kg of sweets.
• New or used goods other than baggage (for example gifts) worth up to USD 500 in total, if they are not for commercial use and you have been outside El Salvador for at least 72 hours. Goods above this amount are taxed.
• Every traveler must complete a customs declaration on arrival; a family traveling together (parents and minor children) can file one declaration. Tobacco and alcohol allowances do not apply to minors.
Currency
• There is no limit on the amount of money you may bring in.
• Cash, bearer negotiable instruments and securities worth USD 15,000 or more (or the equivalent in another currency) must be declared to customs on arrival. Undeclared or wrongly declared money can be held by customs for up to 90 days while you prove its lawful origin, a fine of 20% can apply, and failure to declare is a criminal offence punishable by 3 to 5 years in prison.
Prohibited
• Illegal drugs
• Counterfeit money
• Obscene or pornographic material
• Gambling machines, roulette wheels and gaming tables
• Military weapons and ammunition, pistols and revolvers of .41 caliber or larger, and silencers for firearms
Restricted
• Firearms and ammunition: foreign visitors must apply in advance, through a Salvadoran consulate or the Salvadoran Shooting Federation, for a special temporary permit from the Ministry of National Defense. On leaving the country you must show the weapons to the National Civil Police.
• Food, plants, flowers, fruit and other products of animal or plant origin: declare them on arrival. Quarantine inspectors of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), working with detector dogs, check baggage at the international airport and can confiscate and destroy products that risk bringing in pests or diseases.
• Dogs, cats and rabbits (rabbits depending on the animal health status of the country of origin) need an import authorization from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG). You need the vaccination record and an official health (zoosanitary) certificate issued in the country of origin. The authorization costs USD 9.04, can be requested in advance by email or at the MAG office in Santa Tecla, or at the airport, land borders and ports, and is valid for 30 days for one entry.
• Wild animals and plants, and products made from them, need a CITES or non-CITES permit from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG).
• Travelers' baggage for personal or professional use during the trip, not for sale: clothing, jewelry, toiletries, medicines, sports equipment, a camera, a mobile phone, a laptop and similar portable items.
• Toiletries and perfume: up to 6 units of each type or 20 units in total.
• Adult travelers: 500 g of tobacco products in any form, 5 L of wine, spirits or liquor, and up to 2 kg of sweets.
• New or used goods other than baggage (for example gifts) worth up to USD 500 in total, if they are not for commercial use and you have been outside El Salvador for at least 72 hours. Goods above this amount are taxed.
• Every traveler must complete a customs declaration on arrival; a family traveling together (parents and minor children) can file one declaration. Tobacco and alcohol allowances do not apply to minors.
Currency
• There is no limit on the amount of money you may bring in.
• Cash, bearer negotiable instruments and securities worth USD 15,000 or more (or the equivalent in another currency) must be declared to customs on arrival. Undeclared or wrongly declared money can be held by customs for up to 90 days while you prove its lawful origin, a fine of 20% can apply, and failure to declare is a criminal offence punishable by 3 to 5 years in prison.
Prohibited
• Illegal drugs
• Counterfeit money
• Obscene or pornographic material
• Gambling machines, roulette wheels and gaming tables
• Military weapons and ammunition, pistols and revolvers of .41 caliber or larger, and silencers for firearms
Restricted
• Firearms and ammunition: foreign visitors must apply in advance, through a Salvadoran consulate or the Salvadoran Shooting Federation, for a special temporary permit from the Ministry of National Defense. On leaving the country you must show the weapons to the National Civil Police.
• Food, plants, flowers, fruit and other products of animal or plant origin: declare them on arrival. Quarantine inspectors of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), working with detector dogs, check baggage at the international airport and can confiscate and destroy products that risk bringing in pests or diseases.
• Dogs, cats and rabbits (rabbits depending on the animal health status of the country of origin) need an import authorization from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG). You need the vaccination record and an official health (zoosanitary) certificate issued in the country of origin. The authorization costs USD 9.04, can be requested in advance by email or at the MAG office in Santa Tecla, or at the airport, land borders and ports, and is valid for 30 days for one entry.
• Wild animals and plants, and products made from them, need a CITES or non-CITES permit from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG).