Dear Customs Officials, I Need 400 Litres of Rakija for Personal Use a Year, Cheers

‘I beg you to allow me to make approximately 300 litres of rakija per year because those are my personal needs’, one man has pleaded with Customs officials in Croatia in a hilarious open letter that has gone viral…

When Croatia joined the European Union back in July 2013 a number of things changed for Croatian citizens, and making rakija, the popular potent spirit produced from fermented fruit, for personal use was one of them. The law now recognises those people as small producers, meaning they now must declare their production to Customs officials.

A small producer is allowed to produce approximately 50 litres of rakija per household, while every additional litre produced is slapped with an excise tax at rate of 53 kuna per litre.

Disappointed by the new law, many small time Croatian rakija producers have written letters appealing to Customs authorities, and one hilarious letter from a small producer in Moslavina has become a social network hit.

Dear Sir / Madam,

I am deeply surprised by the decision to limit the production of rakija for personal use to 50 litres. I don’t know who was making these rules, probably someone from Brussels, but that decision is not normal.

It is going to destroy us because we are going to be forced to buy foreign drinks that contain only 40 % alcohol. So now I ask – would only 50 Litres of rakija be sufficient for your needs? That means only one and a half decilitre of rakija per day, and that is not enough even as medicine!!! For every true Croat – everything under 300 Litres doesn’s count.

Personally I make around 300 Litres of rakija per year – a little bit for me and a little bit to offer to my friends. My wife washes windows with it, I use it as an anti-freeze, and if the fuel prices start rising again, my Yugo will use it too. If your inspectors come at my door, I will treat them too, and give each one of them a litre to take home. If that’s not enough for them, I’ll give them another one and another one.

I don’t sell rakija, but I do live for it so I am kindly asking you to approve me producing 300 maybe even 400 Litres of rakija per year because those are my needs. If not, I’m ready to go to court to prove my needs.

Cheers