URL: https://carnet-ata-for-robotics.com/eu/problems Last reviewed: 2026-06-12 Summary: Recovery playbooks for ATA Carnets issued in the EU (Germany, France): missed stamps and alternative proof, claims from foreign customs, goods that stay abroad, lost carnets, and who to call in each country. # Something went wrong. Now what? Carnet problems are fixable, but the fixes are deadline-driven. These playbooks are for carnets **issued in the EU**; the same problem on a Swiss carnet has different procedures (see [the Swiss page](https://carnet-ata-for-robotics.com/switzerland/problems)). One rule applies to every scenario below, in every member state: **your issuing chamber is the single point of contact** - the IHK in Germany, the CCI in France. The chamber sits in the guarantee chain, it has seen every one of these problems before, and the earlier you call, the cheaper the fix. The second rule: **act immediately**. > **ℹ️ Who to call** > > **Problems abroad or with the carnet itself:** your issuing chamber, immediately. For CCI Paris Île-de-France: ATA service 01 55 65 44 44, webata@cci-paris-idf.fr. > **German customs information:** +49 351 44834-510 (Zentrale Auskunft); duty questions go to the competent Hauptzollamt. > **French customs information:** Infos Douane Service, 0 800 94 40 40 (free; +33 1 72 40 78 50 from abroad). ## "I'm back, but I missed a stamp on the way" Maybe the foreign re-export stamp, maybe the yellow EU re-import. Either way the carnet's paper trail has a hole, and a hole becomes a duty claim if you leave it. The Istanbul Convention obliges customs to accept alternative proof of re-exportation, as long as it's **dated before the re-export deadline**. What counts: - A later entry or stamp by another customs administration in the carnet itself. - An EU re-import record: the processed yellow re-import sheet, or a re-presentation note ("Wiedergestellungsvermerk") on the cover. - In Germany, a trilingual **inspection certificate (Besichtigungsbescheinigung)** from any customs office, confirming the goods are physically there. German offices issue these almost without exception if you can show the goods and prove their identity against the list. If you're back home with the goods, this is usually your strongest move - get one promptly so the date helps you. What does *not* count: forwarder statements, affidavits, bills of lading and other non-official documents. Customs rejects them unless they carry a customs stamp. > **ℹ️ France publishes no named equivalent** > > We found no French procedure equivalent to the German inspection certificate, and no published name for one - so we won't invent it. A French carnet returned with holes in its stamp trail is flagged **"non apuré"** (not discharged) by the CCI, which then lays out the regularisation route with the customs administrations involved. Don't approach foreign customs on your own initiative before that call; do gather every stamp photo, transport document, boarding pass and invoice that shows where the goods were and when. ## "A claim arrived from foreign customs" A claim starts when the re-export counterfoil never reached the foreign import office, or goods were re-exported late or only partly. It travels through the guarantee chain to your national guaranteeing association - in Germany the DIHK with Euler Hermes (Allianz Trade) behind it, in France CCI Paris Île-de-France. 1. **Inform your chamber immediately**, especially if foreign customs contacted you directly. Don't negotiate alone. 2. Gather your proof: the carnet (or photos of every page), the yellow re-import counterfoil, and in Germany an inspection certificate if the goods are home. 3. The guarantor settles the claim and then recovers everything from you: duties, taxes, late interest, fines, regularisation charges and handling fees. In Germany, Euler Hermes handles the claim itself without an extra handling fee, but you reimburse any foreign duties it pays out. 4. Know the cost of inaction: if a German carnet isn't returned by expiry or wasn't properly discharged, the IHK must notify Euler Hermes - IHK Berlin charges EUR 25 + VAT just for that notification. > **⚠️ No published fee scales - in either country** > > Switzerland publishes exact regularisation fees; Germany and France don't. We found no official figures for what fixing a missing stamp costs (foreign regularisation charges, IHK "Regulierungsgebühren", CCI handling fees), so we won't invent any. Budget for the duties at stake plus handling charges, and let your chamber quote the real number. ## "The goods are staying abroad" (sold, gifted, stolen, destroyed) A customer kept the robot, or it was stolen from the demo van. Commercially very different; customs-wise the same problem: the goods won't re-export, and the foreign import duties become due - theft and destruction included. That's why carnet goods should be insured for the customs exposure on top of their value. 1. Tell your chamber, and the customs authorities on both sides, without delay. 2. The fix is a **definitive import in the destination country** (France calls it the *mise à la consommation*): the local duties and taxes are paid there, **before the re-export deadline**, and the payment is receipted or annotated **in the carnet**. For a sale, the buyer pays - but you stay liable until that's actually done, regardless of what the buyer promises. 3. German carnets: additionally file a belated export declaration (Ausfuhranmeldung), required for values over EUR 1,000. Planning to sell from the start? Then a carnet was the wrong tool - see [the robotics guide](https://carnet-ata-for-robotics.com/ata-carnet-for-robotics). ## "I lost the carnet" 1. **Goods still abroad:** call your chamber. It can establish a replacement: Germany's **Ersatzcarnet** (identically completed, same number, same validity, with an official seal and covering letter; present it at the customs office that did the original identity check so the identity note is transferred), France's **duplicata**. Neither country publishes a fee for this - the chamber will tell you. 2. **Lost after you're back:** in Germany, ask the EU border office or your Binnenzollamt for a copy of the processed yellow re-import sheet, then get an inspection certificate for the goods. Together that's your evidence against any later claim. In France, call your CCI and assemble the same kind of evidence. 3. A duplicate replaces the booklet, not the stamps already collected. So photograph every page after every stamp from now on - it costs nothing and turns a lost booklet from a crisis into an errand. Prevention is embarrassingly cheap: [a dedicated folder with a GPS tracker in it](https://carnet-ata-for-robotics.com/common-mistakes). ## "The carnet expires but the goods must stay abroad" A carnet can't be extended, anywhere. Contact your chamber **before expiry**. The German route is a follow-up carnet (**Anschlusscarnet**): same goods list, new number, overlapping validity, with old and new presented together to a customs office in the destination country. France's CCIs handle it case by case: ask whether the destination country permits an extension or replacement arrangement and on what conditions. Either way, not every country plays along, so confirm with the destination customs first. Letting the carnet lapse with the goods still abroad turns into the claim scenario above, with duties attached. ## "I'm at the border and there's a problem right now" - **Never cross without processing.** Every procedural error can end with you and the guaranteeing association being held liable, and in Germany violations can additionally count as a regulatory offence or tax evasion. A delayed demo beats that every time. - **Closed desk:** check the office's commercial hours (and the EU Customs Office List) in the office sections of the [Germany](https://carnet-ata-for-robotics.com/eu/germany) and [France](https://carnet-ata-for-robotics.com/eu/france) pages; call the office or the national info line for the nearest alternative. - **Carnet never opened:** a border office can open it too (it then simply acts as the export office), but only with the goods present and within commercial hours. This is exactly the scenario the [open-it-inland habit](https://carnet-ata-for-robotics.com/eu) avoids. ## "I need a carnet urgently" Not a disaster, just tight. In France, GEFI's express option issues in **under 24 hours** for €40 on top of the normal fees. In Germany it depends on the chamber: Berlin offers a Sofort-Service (EUR 20 + VAT), Stuttgart promises three working days for a complete application. Remember the carnet still needs its customs opening at the inland office before first use, so "urgent" means the carnet *and* a customs visit. ## 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. - [IHK Berlin - Carnet ATA (inform the chamber, Euler Hermes notification charge)](https://www.ihk.de/berlin/service-und-beratung/international/export/carnet-ata-2252836) (German) - [IHK Bonn - 60 questions and answers on the carnet (claims, alternative proof, Ersatzcarnet)](https://www.ihk-bonn.de/fileadmin/dokumente/Downloads/Service/60_Fragen_und_Antworten_zum_CARNET.pdf) (German, PDF, older document - used for procedures only, not figures) - [IHK München - Carnet ATA (belated export declaration over EUR 1,000, selling abroad)](https://www.ihk-muenchen.de/ratgeber/internationalisierung/exportdokumente-zoll-exportkontrolle/carnet-ata/) (German) - [Zoll - Carnet ATA violations (liability, competent Hauptzollamt)](https://www.zoll.de/DE/Fachthemen/Zoelle/Zollverfahren/Voruebergehende-Verwendung/Carnet-ATA/Zuwiderhandlungen/zuwiderhandlungen_node.html) (German) - [Zoll - Carnet ATA export and re-import (border opening, re-import at any office)](https://www.zoll.de/DE/Fachthemen/Zoelle/Zollverfahren/Voruebergehende-Verwendung/Carnet-ATA/Ausfuhr-Wiedereinfuhr/ausfuhr_wiedereinfuhr_node.html) (German) - [CCI - Le carnet de passage en douane ATA, mode d’emploi (anomalies, CCI as contact, mise à la consommation, duplicates, incidents)](https://www.cci89.fr/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Mode-demploi-carnet-ATA.pdf) (French, PDF) - [CCI Paris Île-de-France - délivrance des formalités internationales (ATA service contacts)](https://www.entreprises.cci-paris-idf.fr/fiches-pratiques/delivrance-des-formalites-internationales) (French) - [National GEFI carnet tariff as of 01/01/2025 (express option)](https://www.ccinordisere.fr/sites/g/files/mwbcuj1006/files/2025-01/TARIFS%20ATA%20GEFI%202025.pdf) (French, PDF) - [douane.gouv.fr - Carnet ATA (admission temporaire)](https://www.douane.gouv.fr/fiche/carnet-ata-admission-temporairetemporary-admission) (French) --- This is an independent guide for robotics companies, not an official government resource. Customs rules, fees, locations and opening hours change, so always confirm details with the linked official sources (customs administrations and chambers of commerce) before you travel.