The ATA Carnet is an international customs document that allows goods, including works of art, to circulate temporarily in more than 80 countries without paying the customs duties and taxes normally owed at each border crossing. For art market players, galleries, museums, auction houses, collectors and artists, it is the reference tool for managing international exhibitions, art fairs, intermuseum loans and previews for auction sales abroad.
Official definition of the ATA Carnet
According to the French Directorate General of Customs and Indirect Taxes (DGDDI), the ATA Carnet, Admission Temporaire / Temporary Admission, replaces the various customs documents normally required for a temporary import, temporary export or transit operation. It allows international trade operators to carry out their operations with suspension of duties and taxes, provided the goods are re-exported in their original state within the allotted time.
This mechanism is particularly well suited to the transport of works of art since a piece lent for an exhibition or shown at a fair is not intended to enter the commerce of the host country, it must return to its starting point.
What does the acronym ATA stand for?
The acronym ATA is a contraction of the French Admission Temporaire and English Temporary Admission, which express exactly the same customs reality in the two official languages of the procedure.
The legal framework: the Brussels and Istanbul Conventions
The ATA Carnet is based on two successive international treaties.
The Customs Convention on the ATA Carnet for the temporary admission of goods, signed in Brussels on 6 December 1961, laid the foundations of the system. Drawn up under the auspices of the Customs Co-operation Council, now the World Customs Organization (WCO), it established a single document replacing multiple national declarations.
The Istanbul Convention of 26 June 1990, ratified by France and published by decree no. 2007-1040 of 15 June 2007, modernised and extended the system. It progressively replaced some fifteen earlier international instruments by gathering the various thematic annexes into a single text, including the one relating to fairs, exhibitions and similar events.
Today, the ATA Carnet is usable in trade with States that have acceded to one or both of these conventions.
How does the ATA Carnet work?
The principle is one of suspension of duties and taxes, not a permanent exemption. On entry into the country of temporary admission, the customs authority stamps the carnet and releases the goods without collecting customs duties or VAT. On exit, a new stamp confirms that the goods are leaving in their original state. It is this dual stamping that discharges the operation.
The carnet is issued by a guaranteeing association, approved by the customs authorities and affiliated with an international guarantee chain. This chain is run by the World Chambers Federation (WCF), the international chambers organisation of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). In France, the carnet is issued by the Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CCI), under the authority of the CCI Paris Île-de-France, which acts as guarantor vis-à-vis the customs administrations for all operations carried out under the carnet.
Key benefits of the ATA Carnet
The ATA Carnet offers four concrete benefits for fine art transport operators:
- Suspension of duties and taxes in all signatory countries
- A single document valid for several trips and several countries during its period of validity
- Removal of the security deposits and bonds usually required at each border
- Legal security of operations through the international WCF guarantee
Why is the ATA Carnet essential for fine art transport?
The international transport of works of art is particularly well suited to the ATA procedure, for several reasons.
Temporary exhibitions and loans between institutions
Museums lending each other works as part of an intermuseum transfer or an intermuseum loan between France and a third country use the ATA Carnet to avoid having to tie up considerable sums in duties and taxes for the duration of the exhibition. For a major work that may be valued at several million euros, these amounts would be prohibitive for cultural institutions.
International fairs and biennials
Galleries exhibiting at Art Basel (Basel, Miami Beach, Paris, Hong Kong), Frieze, TEFAF Maastricht or the Venice Biennale present works that may be sold, but may also return to the dealer’s stock. The ATA Carnet makes it possible to display works at the fair with duties suspended, then to regularise the pieces actually sold on site according to local tax rules, while unsold works return without any further customs formalities.
International auction sales
Auction houses use the ATA Carnet for the public display of works before the sale, in particular during pre-sale exhibitions held in several cities. The mechanism covers the entire presentation circuit. If a work is sold, the operation falls outside the temporary admission regime and must be regularised by a release for free circulation, with payment of local duties and taxes. If it does not find a buyer, it returns to its country of origin without customs charges.
Expert appraisal and authentication abroad
A work sent to an expert based outside the European Union for an appraisal, a condition report or an authentication may travel under an ATA Carnet, provided no physical intervention is carried out on the work. Conversely, a work intended to be restored cannot travel under an ATA Carnet, since restoration legally falls under repair, which is excluded from the scheme (see section below).
Countries accepting the ATA Carnet
The ATA Carnet is now recognised in more than 80 countries and customs territories, covering the main art markets: the European Union (for extra-EU flows), the United States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Australia, etc. The list evolves regularly, so it is essential to check it with your CCI or on the official customs website before each operation.
The ATA Carnet is not required for intra-EU exchanges between Member States of the European Union, except for operations between mainland France and the French overseas departments and regions (DROM) or overseas collectivities (COM), which fall under a separate tax regime.
Validity, duration and obligations of the holder
An ATA Carnet is valid for a maximum of twelve months from its date of issue, with no possibility of renewal. During this period, the goods may make several trips in one or more signatory countries, depending on the carnet format (single round trip, multiple, circular or star-shaped).
Important: the validity of the carnet should not be confused with the permitted period of stay in each country of temporary admission, which may be shorter and is set by the local customs authorities.
The holder is required to:
- spontaneously present the carnet at each border crossing, both on entry and on exit
- have the relevant vouchers stamped by the customs authorities
- re-export the goods in their original state within the deadlines set by each country of temporary admission
- return the carnet to the issuing CCI at the end of operations
Failure to re-export, loss of the carnet or non-compliant use exposes the holder to the payment of duties, taxes and penalties due in the country concerned. This is why the ATA Carnet always forms part of a rigorously documented fine art transport plan.
How to obtain an ATA Carnet in France
Applications are made exclusively online via the national GEFI platform (Gestion Électronique des Formalités Internationales) at www.formalites-export.com, operated by the CCI Paris Île-de-France on behalf of all French CCIs.
The holder provides:
- their details as a natural or legal person
- the general list of goods: for works of art, this means precisely indicating the title, the artist, the technique or materials, the dimensions, the dating and the declared value of each piece
- the planned destination and transit countries
- the means of transport and the trip format
The competent CCI processes the file and issues the carnet, in the form of a green A4 booklet with detachable vouchers (yellow for export/re-import, white for temporary admission/re-export, blue for transit). For fine art transport, the precision of the inventory is crucial: each piece must be identified clearly enough to avoid any ambiguity during customs checks, in line with the usual inventory and traceability requirements of fine art transport. Some CCIs offer fast-track services with delivery within 48 hours for straightforward cases.
How much does an ATA Carnet cost?
The cost of an ATA Carnet depends on two main parameters:
- The pre-tax value of the goods covered, which determines the amount of the security premium borne by the issuing CCI vis-à-vis the customs authorities
- The number of destinations and trips planned, which affects the number of vouchers required
On top of this premium, the issuing CCI charges administrative fees (basic flat rate plus possible supplements for changes or extensions). For high-value fine art transport, the security premium often represents the main component of the cost.
Limits of the ATA Carnet and additional documents
The ATA Carnet simplifies the customs procedure, but it does not exempt from the other formalities applicable to works of art exported from France. Several additional documents may still be required.
The cultural property certificate and export licence
Any work whose value or age exceeds the thresholds set by the French Heritage Code (Code du patrimoine) must be covered by a cultural property certificate, or even an export licence issued by the Ministry of Culture for shipments outside the European Union. The ATA Carnet never replaces these authorisations, it complements them.
The Washington Convention (CITES)
For works incorporating protected animal or plant materials (ivory, tortoise shell, certain wood species, feathers), the Washington Convention, also known as CITES, requires the issuance of a dedicated certificate, separately from the ATA Carnet.
The exclusion of restoration and repair operations
The ATA Carnet does not cover goods intended for processing or repair abroad. In practice, a work sent to a restorer based outside the EU falls under the outward processing regime, which allows EU goods to be temporarily exported for repair or transformation in a third country, then re-imported with full or partial relief from import duties. This distinction is essential for collectors and institutions that entrust works to specialist workshops abroad.
Insurance for the works transported
The ATA Carnet is a customs document, not an insurance policy. Financial protection of the work during transport relies on a dedicated policy, typically nail-to-nail insurance covering the work from its removal at the point of departure to its rehanging at destination, including the return trip.
Towards the e-ATA Carnet: the 2026 evolution
From 1 June 2026, the ATA Carnet will reach a major milestone with the gradual launch of the e-ATA Carnet by the CCI Paris Île-de-France. This shift to digital aims to:
- simplify procedures for businesses
- strengthen the security of operations
- align the ATA Carnet with current standards for international customs procedures
The roll-out is progressive. From 1 June 2026, the e-ATA Carnet will be fully operational for the 27 EU countries, as well as Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Norway and the French overseas territories, which together account for 35 to 40% of French ATA activity. The other countries in the ATA network will have until early 2028 to switch to fully digital operation, in successive groups on a six-monthly schedule.
In practical terms, the carnet becomes accessible via mobile application and web interface, with formalities based on QR codes, real-time tracking of operations and enhanced traceability at customs crossings. The legal framework, the customs guarantee and the role of the CCIs remain unchanged.
For fine art transport operators, who sometimes multiply border crossings within a single exhibition tour, this shift to digital promises significant time savings at customs posts.