Destroying goods temporarily exported out of the UK

If you want to destroy goods that are listed on an ATA Carnet in the country they’ve been temporarily exported to, you need to get permission from customs in the country the goods are in.

Destroying goods temporarily imported into the UK

If your goods are in the UK, you must contact the National ATA Carnet Unit at least 5 working days before you intend to destroy them.

You’ll need to tell them the:

• list numbers on the carnet of the goods you’ll destroy
• address, date and time the destruction will take place
• name of the business that will destroy the goods

You must get a certificate or letter confirming the destruction, including the description and quantity of the goods you’ve destroyed.

Check if you need to make a declaration for the destroyed goods

You may need to make a declaration for the waste material of the destroyed goods if the duty due is over £9. You need to:

• find the commodity code of the waste material
• check if there’s duty to pay

You can use the Trade Tariff: look up commodity codes, duty and VAT rates service to do this.

If Customs Duty due is more than £9

You’ll need to make a declaration in the Customs Declarations Service. Enter in:

• DE 2/1 (Previous Document) ‘Z955’ followed by the carnet number
• DE 2/2 (Additional Information) code ‘GEN45’ and the postcode of the location where the goods can be examined
• DE 5/23 the Location of Goods code for the port or airport that the goods originally arrived at — if they arrived at a GVMS location use the non-GVMS code for that location

You can get help to complete your declaration from the imports and exports general enquiries helpline.

If you have a digital carnet

You need to create a travel in your app and assign it to the ‘National Carnet Unit’. Send the National ATA Carnet Unit an email with the:

If you have a paper carnet

You need to send to the National ATA Carnet Unit:

• the certificate of destruction
• evidence that your declaration has been accepted
• a covering letter with the UK address they should return the carnet to

If Customs Duty due is £9 or less

You will not need to make a declaration, but you do need to send a certificate of destruction or letter confirming destruction to the National ATA Carnet Unit.

Leaving the UK after destroying the goods

When you leave the UK, you should still show the carnet to customs. For a:

• digital carnet they’ll scan the travel in your app
• paper carnet they’ll stamp the re-export voucher and counterfoil with the reason for non-export

If you want to re-export the waste from the destroyed goods, the National ATA Carnet Unit can advise on what you need to do.

For more information about destroying goods covered by a carnet, read the ATA Carnet technical handbook.