Carnet Shipments
By shipping temporary exports with a ATA Carnet document to clear foreign customs, merchandise and equipment pass duty free and import tax free into a carnet country for up to one year. ATA Carnets also serve as the Certificate of Registration upon re-importation.
Carnets are often called Merchandise Passports for Boomerang Carnets® since all temporarily exported goods on a carnet must return to their country of origination.
ATA Carnet is an international customs document that permits the tax-free and duty-free temporary export and import of goods for up to one year. The Carnet eliminates the need to purchase temporary import bonds. So long as the goods are re-exported within the allotted time frame, no duties or taxes are due.
The ATA Carnet System is currently in force in 85 countries and regions.Beside the 28 member states of the European Union and member states of the European Free Trade Association, the ATA Carnet is in force in Albania, Algeria, Antarctica, Andorra, Aruba, Australia, Bahrain, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Canada, Chile, China, Côte d’Ivoire, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Japan, Republic of Korea, Lebanon, Lesotho, Macau, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Namibia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Puerto Rico, Russia, Senegal, Serbia, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Tahiti, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates and the United States of America.
Carnets apply to three broad categories of merchandise: commercial samples, professional equipment, and goods for use at exhibitions and fairs.
Individuals or firms wishing to use a carnet to move goods in and out of foreign countries must submit an application and the necessary collateral to their home national guaranteeing organization. The application, among other things, lists all countries of intended transit and all applicable goods with their assigned values. If the application is properly completed and submitted with the applicable fees the national guaranteeing organization will issue a carnet specifically tailored to that itinerary. The carnet document has two green cover pages denoting country of origin with instructions. Within the covers are counterfoils and vouchers for each country to be visited or transited. The vouchers act as receipts for entry and re-export in foreign countries and are kept by foreign customs officials. The counterfoils are stamped by the foreign customs services and act as the carnet holders receipt.