What is an ATA Carnet?
The ATA Carnet is an international customs document that permits duty-free and tax-free temporary import of goods for up to one year. The initials "ATA" are an acronym of the French and English words "Admission Temporaire/Temporary Admission."
ATA Carnets cover:
- commercial samples;
- professional equipment;
- goods for presentation or use at trade fairs, shows and exhibitions
That means almost anything: computers, repair tools, photographic and film equipment, musical instruments, industrial machinery, vehicles, jewellery, clothing, medical appliances and aircraft, race horses, old masters, prehistoric relics, ballet costumes and rock group sound systems are just some of the items that can cross borders duty-free and tax-free, thanks to ATA Carnets.
Note: ATA Carnets do NOT cover perishable or consumable items or goods for processing or repair.
How a Carnet works
The ATA Carnet is a simple international customs document with two sheets for presentation for each foreign country you wish to visit, and two sheets for presentation to customs when leaving and returning to your home country.
You give one sheet to the foreign customs officials when you enter their country and the other when you leave it. The same applies when exiting and entering your own country.
What can the Carnet do?
Armed with their ATA Carnet, sales reps, exhibitors and other business travellers can:
- make advance customs arrangements at predetermined cost
- visit more than one country
- use their ATA Carnet for several trips during its one-year validity
- return to their home country with their goods and without problems or delays
