ATA Carnet Rolling Guarantee
Cops Docs
Our rolling guarantee
The majority of our clients have their ATA carnets put in our name, as it means they can use our guarantee. We have a large rolling (continuing) guarantee set up with the London Chamber of Commerce, and we charge a premium for the use of it. The premium is determined by the actual guarantee amount, and the length of time for which the ATA carnet will be in use. Our premiums are extremely competitive and we will match any genuine written quote that you have received elsewhere.
Information about the required ATA Carnet guarantee
- An ATA carnet is valid for one year minus one day.
- The ATA carnet may be used for the whole of this time, provided that a suitable guarantee is in place.
- The ATA carnet cannot be used after its validity date, and if goods are still in a foreign country when the carnet expires, they are immediately eligible for import duty and any other Customs charges that are applicable, even if they are subsequently returned to the UK by other means.
- The goods covered by a carnet may either stay in one country for the whole of the carnet’s validity, or they may move around between various countries if the carnet has been issued for multiple trips. The exception to this is when Customs in a foreign country set a time limit for the re-export of the goods. It is vital that time limits are adhered to, because Customs are entitled to levy import duties/taxes on goods that overstay a time limit.
The London Chamber of Commerce will not issue a carnet without a suitable guarantee being in place. The amount of the guarantee must be for the highest rate of duties applicable of all the countries in which the carnet is going to be used. If a claim for Customs charges is lodged by a foreign Customs, you are obliged by the terms and conditions of the carnet to pay those charges. If for some reason you refuse to pay, the London Chamber of Commerce will invoke the guarantee to obtain the money.
If you do not wish to use our rolling guarantee, there are three alternative methods of putting up the guarantee, see example below.
Example
Using a carnet which is to cover video filming equipment with a total value of £30,000 going to the USA, (which has a duty rate of 38%),
for one month, these are your other options for putting up the guarantee:
- Banker’s Draft / Cash Deposit
You would give the London Chamber a bank Draft for £11,400.00, which they would cash. They would draw a cheque to reimburse you once the carnet had been returned to them and any problems with it had been resolved. Any charges would be taken from these funds if you refused to pay them – your bank would obviously then retrieve the funds from you. - Bank Guarantee
You would give a guarantee form, which is obtainable from the London Chamber of Commerce, to your bank for signing. This must then be sent to the London Chamber of Commerce. Basically your bank signs the form to say that they will pay the £11,400.00 to the Chamber of Commerce should you default. Your bank will be able to advise you what charges they would make for this. You will probably have to sign a counter indemnity with them, so that they can retrieve the funds from your account should charges become due. - Guarantee From the London Chamber of Commerce
You pay a premium, which in this case would be £308.14 (inc VAT), to the London Chamber of Commerce, to set up a guarantee with their in-house CSS guarantee service. Should charges become due and you refuse to pay, the chamber will invoke the guarantee to settle the charges, and then start proceedings to claim the money back from you.