duty-free

[doo-tee-free, dyoo-]

adjective

1. free of customs duty or tax on imported or exported goods.

   duty-free cargo; merchandise shipped duty-free.

2. pertaining to or selling goods for import or export free of the usual customs duty.

   a duty-free shop at the airport.

duty-free

adjective

1. with exemption from customs or excise duties

noun

1. goods sold in a duty-free shop

Word History and Origins

Origin of duty-free¹

1680–90; duty (in the sense “an import or export tax”) + -free

Example Sentences

In its early years, Cambridge College attracted funding from the Rockefeller family, David Koch and Charles Feeney, who made a fortune from duty-free shops.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Companies are paying tariffs on goods that previously entered the country duty-free.

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The legislation had provided duty-free entry into the U.S. and generated economic benefits to both sides, according to business advocates.

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Under the most recent threshold of $800, the number of packages entering the U.S. duty-free had skyrocketed.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Letters and personal gifts worth less than $100 will still be duty-free.

Read more on BBC