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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Carnet

I'm from Norway and as we are not part of the Eurpoean Union,we have to have a carnet as soon as we leave the country. We risk having to pay the full mva (sales tax) on return if the papers are not in order. Sales tax here is 25% so we are talking serious money.
To get the carnet you have to pay the sales tax equivalent into a locked account as a deposit, then diffferent fees for each travel. Annoying and expensive.
Having said that, my partner is in Spain now with our Epic, without carnet this time. I think it's easier to travel with an Epic and nobody "notice" as opposed to a Sony XDCAM 700 or similar, as fewer people will recognize the Epic for what it really is ;-)
 
Why risk it.. if you are a professional, do the professional thing, and get a carnet. You run the risk of getting flagged by customs, and potentially being unable to go with equipment in future travel. Its a pretty simple process, do it right the first time, and never have issues.

My thoughts.
 
Carnet

You only have to be wrong once and poof! all your equipment goes into a government lockup until you pay a bond for the enter duty on it.

This happened to me once and that was a lesson learned. Now I travel with a Carnet no matter where I go. It's a much smaller and cheaper pain in the ass than the alternative.
Rob
 
I despise carnets....i use them on jobs that pay for them, but when i travel and the intent is ONLY for return to USA and dealing with customs...i'm a FEAND and have 6-12 cases of gear and about 90% carry my electronic and paper (copy) invoices with me....A carnet is there in USA (as they term it) to be sure you are not brining back undeclared and untaxed gear...so you can just carry your receipts...

NOW, going to OTHER countries---best to learn THEIR entry laws...often times in say Mexico (Now a Carnet country) you cannot get into the country with a carnet. They may not know what it is or understand it and then demand a temporary importation permit -- OOPS! now your screwed.

....i find what i MOST important when traveling abroad is a fixer in that country that can fix these things for you....or guide you. Then you ALWAYS have someone to call when and it will go wrong at some point in time. Hard to argue with a customs official in ANY country unless you understand well those laws in that country and have all required documentation to prove it (USA is only place i know i can do this)....in foreign countries---best to get guided and fixed. a carnet guarantees you NOTHING when abroad.
 
I have traveled from the US to Europe with carnets and without carnets ... most recently was a 3 week gig in Northern Italy without a carnet. As I am sure you know, a carnet is basically a passport for your equipment. In theory the carnet (actually the bond that is required for one) acts as a sort of guarantee that you will not "export" (i.e. sell) your equipment in the foreign country, (thereby avoiding the various taxes and duties that are imposed), and correspondingly, it tells our customs folks that you did not buy your equipment abroad, and that no duties or taxes are owed upon your return.

When I have traveled to Europe with shit-loads of gear, (cases and cases of gear can raise all sorts of raise all sorts of suspicion), I have generally bit the bullet and obtained a carnet. They are not that expensive, but not exactly cheap either .... they are based upon the value of your gear. The biggest hassle is that you have to get your documents stamped by US customs when you leave, then stamped by the foreign customs when you arrive and when you leave, and then by the US customs when you return. Generally, a PITA ... so allow extra time for that. The customs officers in most, in not all, Western European countries understand the process ... you just sometimes have to wait to get a customs officer to look at your stuff and stamp the forms. (The other thing you have to watch for is that if you are traveling with cases and cases of gear, and the foreign immigration officer asks you the purpose of your trip ... and you say "business" and you don't have an appropriate visa or permit to "work" in that country ... you may have a whole lot of explaining to do. That happened to me once once on a trip to England, when we arrived with crew, the talent, and cases and cases of stuff.)

On our trip to Italy last month, I didn't use a carnet. We traveled light. Our Scarlet-w-2 Nikon zoom lenses were carried-on. Everything else went in our checked-in luggage. I did take copies of my purchase receipts for the camera and lenses in my brief case. No issues, problems, questions whatsoever by US or Italian officials. The only thing was that we flew out of a small airport (Turin) and the girl manning the x-ray scanner had never seen a RED camera before, so we had to take it out of the bag and it got a bomb-swab.


___________________________________
Scarlet X # 1859 “Bettie Page”
“… preparing to ‘whip’ the competition …”

Zeiss Lenses:

CY 21/2.8
ZF 28/2.0
CY 35-70/3.4
CY 50/1.4
ZF100/2.0

Nikon Lenses:
G 14-24/2.8
G 24-70/2.8
D 80-200/2.8

Tokina Lenses:

11-16/2.8
 
I recently had trouble trying to bring my Epic equipment into New Zealand because the producer did not complete the Carnet properly and it was not valid.
New Zealand customs wanted to impound our equipment and suggested i get a customs broker to import properly, you can imagine how much time and $$ that would cost.
After much begging and nearly missing our connection from Aukland to Christchurch the customs supervisor took pity on me and signed off letting me bring the equipment into the country after all.

So in the end i dont know, it is a pain to have to use a Carnet but sometimes a major pain not to have one.
 
p.s. if you can travel light and get in under the radar you have good chance of nobody asking any questions but if they do ask and especially if you show them your receipts for the true value of the equipment then i am pretty sure that New Zealand will not let you in without either a Carnet or bond.

Either way make sure your shoes are clean when you travel to New Zealand ;-)
 
Kemalettin Sert said:
one time to Russia they dont even read/speak english in there so carnet isnt important lol...
Click to expand...

Actually,when I shot in Russia in 1995, my gear almost got locked up (about a half-dozen cases) even though I had a carnet. Fortunately, I had a Russian translator with me.
 
John's point about having a local fixer is very valid. Many places, particularly in the developing world, have customs posts that are understaffed or the staff doesn't speak English or has never seen a Carnet or is expecting a bribe and so on. In these cases a local fixer is vital, even if he can't physically get to you past the passport control or whatever—he can translate and fix on a cellphone. A Carnet is not a magic bullet and it is actually a pretty silly document in terms of its actual value, but when you need it, you really need it. And you often can't know that in advance. Its true that with a small package, it is possible to slip by as a tourist, but if they stop you, it can get ugly. But if you have very many cases, and they look like camera cases, you are probably going to attract attention.
 
Over the years I've carried a lot of equipment into a lot of different countries. In countries that are in the carnet system having a carnet has always worked out well (as posted above, Mexico is new to the system and may be more difficult than some right now). I have worked with photographers that tried to get equipement in by declaring themselves tourists. One got caught in Canada and got delayed and fined. Not worth it. I have never had a client not understand that there is a cost to traveling internationally and a carnet is one cost. A fixer is necessary everywhere else. I always dread going into those countries like Peru, Saudi Arabia, or Tanzania where you need to figure out their requirements individually. You are risking your equipment if you try to get around this. Just plan extra time for customs in your flight plans.

Bob
 
Yes, just do it. We've had some funny experiences lately -on both sides of the border the agents in Canada and the US neither of the officers on the ground knew how to fill out the carnets and required a senior person to sort it out on their end. In one case I had to advise them what parts to fill out. So they're rare but totally essential. Not worth losing a flight or three because the paperwork wasn't there.
 
What's Your Appetite for Risk?

What's Your Appetite for Risk?

The answer all depends upon your appetite for risk and ability to accept that with travel (especially international travel) there will be hassles. Entering any country with foreign equipment for commercial use is a dutiable and taxable transaction and without proper temporary import documentation it is considered smuggling. Unfortunately it is very hard to determine exactly how much risk you are taking because of the variation in how customs regulations are enforced and the fact that the local customs officials always have some leeway. The only widely accepted temporary import-export document is the ATA Carnet with all of its imperfections. The benefit to solving a problem with a carnet is that you can always contact the issuing organization (we have an international 800 # for this purpose and customer service 24/7) and have them talk to the customs official. We can also contact the guaranteeing association in the foreign country and have them speak with customs. Is this a hassle? Yes. Does it have to happen occasionally. Yes. But mostly the 6,000 carnets we issue each year manage to clear customs around the world without a problem. But if you can get your gear through foreign and US customs another legal way and avoid purchasing a carnet then of course it makes sense to do so. Methods that don't fall into the legal category need to be considered with an understanding of your appetite for risk and ability to mitigate the consequences, if any.
 
Get a Carnet!!
Both Aussie & New Zealand Customs are good to deal with when you have the right paper work! No question, in/out of a country with the least a\mount of hassle!!!
Travel well, ...
P.
 
How about India ?

How about India ?

I'm planning a trip to India, and will be bringing a Scarlet and some gear that all ( except for the tripod ) will fit in my carry on backpack.
Should I expect issues at the airport ? I don't remember last time I went there if they even looked at my bags, but I have a faint memory of them doing so. Even so, the kit isn't that much different than a big DSLR setup, so I should be OK.
Anyone care to comment on India customs issues ?
Thanks
 
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