Savannah Chrisley Reveals Near-Jail Experience After Customs Revelation: 'I Was Sweating Bullets'

Near-jail customs scare

Savannah Chrisley described a tense encounter with U.S. customs officers while flying home from a European vacation, saying the situation became serious enough that she felt she “almost went to jail.” The incident came up on the November 18 episode of her podcast, where she recounted how a routine declaration of purchases turned into an alarming ordeal.

How the customs issue started

Chrisley explained that when travelers return to the United States, they must declare what they bought abroad and estimate how much money they spent. She said she did not realize how strict the process was and gave customs officers a rough number instead of a carefully tracked total. According to her, she had shopped in “four or five different countries” and simply had not kept precise tabs on her spending.

Agent questions and “far off” total

Savannah said she handed over both her receipts and the items she purchased, expecting everything to be routine. An agent compared her estimate to the receipts and told her, “Your number is far off,” which immediately made her realize that an offhand guess could carry real consequences. At that point, she was separated from the main line and sent into “a different process,” heightening her anxiety about what might happen next.

Threat of fine and confiscation

During the interaction, Chrisley recalled that customs personnel warned her they could confiscate her new purchases and impose a fine of up to $10,000. She admitted she panicked, apologized, and tried to explain that she had not been intentionally deceptive but simply had not tracked every transaction on her multi-country trip. The possibility of losing her souvenirs and facing a large penalty left her “sweating bullets,” as she put it.

Todd Chrisley’s reaction

Savannah shared the story while talking with her father, Todd Chrisley, who reacted with a joking remark about her miscalculation. His quip added a bit of humor to the retelling, but the underlying story still emphasized how quickly a casual estimate at customs can escalate into a serious problem.

Resolution with a different agent

Ultimately, Savannah said the situation was resolved after she spoke with another customs officer who was more understanding. This agent clarified what could happen to seized items and mentioned that customs sometimes confiscates extreme or bizarre things, including stuffed animals like a taxidermied lion and even illegal drugs. Hearing about those examples, she joked that if her belongings had been taken, “you would have seen me on the news,” underscoring how dramatic the experience felt to her in the moment.

Takeaway for travelers

Chrisley framed her story as a warning for others, calling it a kind of public service announcement about being accurate with customs declarations. She stressed that travelers should keep better records of what they buy overseas and understand that officials treat false or significantly inaccurate declarations as a serious matter, even when the mistake comes from poor tracking rather than deliberate fraud.

“When you are traveling, you have to declare if you make purchases overseas, which I did… I gave them a number and I didn’t know it was this serious.”

Customs told her they could “seize” her items and fine her $10,000 if her declaration did not match her receipts.

Savannah said she was “sweating bullets” at the thought of losing her souvenirs and facing a massive fine.

Author’s one-sentence summary: Savannah Chrisley turned a frightening customs scare over an inaccurate spending estimate—and the threat of a $10,000 fine and confiscated souvenirs—into a cautionary tale about taking declaration rules seriously when returning from overseas travel.

AOL — 2025-11-28