ATA Carnet for Robotics

ATA Carnets for robotics companies

Robots travel more than almost any other product. A single demo unit might do a trade fair in Germany, a customer evaluation in the UK and a field test in the US within one quarter. And each of those border crossings is, in customs terms, an import of industrial machinery. This page maps the carnet rules onto the situations robotics teams actually face. If you don't yet know what a carnet is, start with the plain-language explanation.

Which robotics trips fit a carnet

ScenarioCarnet categoryWorks?
Exhibiting a robot at a trade fair or congress Goods for exhibitions ✅ Classic carnet use case
Customer demo operated by your own engineers Professional equipment / commercial samples ✅ Yes
Showing a unit to win orders (no sale of the unit itself) Commercial samples ✅ Yes
Field test / unpaid pilot run by your team "Test purposes" (accepted on Swiss carnets) ✅ Yes, just declare the purpose in the application
Paid pilot where the customer operates the robot — ⚠️ Risky: charging for the use of carnet goods is prohibited, and several countries (e.g. Canada) explicitly exclude leased goods. Ask your chamber; consider the destination country's own temporary-import procedure.
Robot shipped abroad and likely to be sold — ❌ Carnets are for goods not for sale
Sending a robot abroad (or receiving one) for repair — ❌ Repair/processing is excluded; use outward-processing procedures instead
Deployment longer than 12 months — ❌ Hard limit; a replacement carnet can stretch to ~2 years in countries that accept it

Building the goods list (General List)

The General List is the frozen inventory of everything that may ever travel on that carnet. Once Swiss customs activates the carnet, you can't add anything. So list generously. You don't have to take everything on every trip; unused items are simply struck off on the voucher for that trip.

Lithium batteries

Two separate rulebooks apply, and it's worth keeping them apart in your head:

Export controls are not waived

A carnet replaces the customs duty paperwork. It does not replace export licences. Swiss chamber guidance is explicit: goods subject to export-permit requirements need a SECO permit even when travelling under a carnet. Robots are surprisingly often in scope: cameras, LiDAR, autonomy software, encrypted radios and thermal sensors can all trigger dual-use classification. Check your export-control classification once, before the first trip.

"Can we just sell the demo unit?"

It happens constantly: the customer watches the demo and wants to keep the robot. Simply leaving it there is the expensive option. The carnet stays undischarged, and the duty claim (plus up to 10% penalty and handling fees) arrives via the guarantee chain months later. The clean path:

  1. Before the re-export deadline (ideally weeks before), arrange a definitive import clearance in the destination country, so the goods come "off the carnet".
  2. Present the carnet at that clearance and have the clearance noted in the carnet.
  3. The buyer (or your fiscal representative) pays local import duties and VAT.
  4. File the corresponding definitive export declaration at home so the temporary export becomes final.

Some countries still charge a small penalty on top. And if a sale is likely from the start, don't use a carnet at all. That's what national temporary-import procedures with "uncertain sale" provisions are for.

Insurance: the part everyone skips

If your robot is stolen or destroyed abroad, customs does not waive the import duties. The goods never re-exported, so the claim comes anyway. Swiss chambers therefore advise insuring carnet goods for their value plus 20–50% to cover the contingent customs liability. For a robotics company with one demo unit, this is the difference between losing one robot and losing one robot plus a five-figure customs bill.

Freight forwarder or hand-carry?

The robotics pre-departure checklist

  1. Goods list complete: every serialised item, realistic values, no consumables.
  2. Export-control check done (SECO / dual-use).
  3. Battery transport compliance separate from the carnet (IATA DGR if flying).
  4. Carnet activated at Swiss customs (or digital carnet loaded in the app) - see using your carnet.
  5. Border crossings planned around customs opening hours - see road borders and the airport guides.
  6. Insurance covers value + customs exposure.
  7. Calendar reminders: foreign re-export deadline, carnet expiry, return-to-chamber.

Sources

Every factual claim on this page comes from the sources below, checked on the "last reviewed" date in the footer. Official resources are linked in whatever language they are published in.