The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) World ATA Carnet Council and many national chambers of commerce, along with Customs participants, celebrated the 50th anniversary of the ATA Carnet during meetings of the ATA/Istanbul Convention Administrative Committee on 24 March 2014 at the World Customs Organization (WCO).
The ATA Carnet is a prime example of successful Customs-business partnerships for promoting trade and investment. In addition, this partnership is instrumental for implementation of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Agreement on Trade Facilitation (ATF) Article on Temporary Admission.
There are substantial economic benefits to be gained from temporary admissions of goods. The ATA Carnet System, which is based on the Istanbul Convention as well as the ATA Convention, is one of the most important internationally accepted systems for the movement of goods under temporary admission through multiple Customs territories.
The Administrative Committee discussed various issues to improve the effectiveness of the ATA Carnet System including the development of a paperless ATA Carnet using the Globally Networked Customs concept to further facilitate trade. The Administrative Committee reaffirmed that cooperation between Customs administrations and issuing/guaranteeing associations is vital to enhance the effectiveness of the ATA Carnet System.