ATA Carnet

A Carnet or ATA-Carnet (pronounced kar-nay) is an international customs and export-import document. It is used to clear customs without paying duties and import taxes on merchandise that will be re-exported within 12 months. ATA’ is an acronym of the French and English words ‘Admission Temporaire/Temporary Admission’, and there are 16 chambers of commerce in Norway that issues ATA Carnet. Bergen Chamber of Commerce is one of these.

Who can use a ATA-Carnet?

An ATA-Carnet is never required, but can be beneficial for temporary exports or boomerang freights. The advantages include cost savings, time savings and smooth foreign and U.S. customs clearance for commercial samples, professional equipment and trade show exhibits. ATA-Carnets are accepted in 79 countries and territories around the world. New countries are added to the ATA Carnet system every year.

An ATA carnet has a maximum validity of one year. Within this year, you can make up to 10 trips with all or part of the merchant list listed in the carnet. Oslo Chamber of Commerce is a guarantee organization for the carnet system in Norway.  Download a brochure about the ATA-Carnet here

Authorisation of Export Documents

A number of import countries require verification of export document information by a Chamber of Commerce before they are accepted. The Bergen Chamber of Commerce offers authorisation of export documents online. With the program eCertify you can submit your export documents to the BCC electronically. Only documents for Egypt is handled manually.

Log in to the online verification system here 

The most typical documents for verification at the Chamber are:

• Certificate of Origin (L501)
• Invoice/pro forma invoice
• Company attestations, authorizations
• Contracts, agency agreements and declarations
• Health certificates for fish
• Visa applications for Saudi Arabia

The Certificate of Origin L 501 is used to document the origin of the commodity during customs handling in the import country. L 501 is a universal document of origin for cases requiring proof of origin, but where there are no specific documents issued for this purpose. The certificate does not give any customs benefits.  You can download a formular for the Certificate of Origin (L501) here.

Some countries require additional verification from the embassy or consulate of the import country. We recommend our customers obtain information from the importer regarding the number of certificates that need verification and by whom, since each import country has their own regulations.

You can obtain further information about verification regulations in different counties by subscribing to the Export Handbook issued by Innovation Norway, www.eksporthandboken.no