IV.2.3.7.1. Introduction
Article 11, paragraph 2, of the Convention
Articles 36 to 39 of Appendix I to the Convention
Article 192 of the CAU
Article 299 of the AE
Article 39 of Appendix I to the Convention
Article 302 of the AE
It is important to ensure that goods transported under the transit regime can be identified. As a general rule, sealing can be used to identify such goods.
However, the customs office of departure may exempt the seal from being required if the description of the goods in the declaration or in the supporting documents is sufficiently precise to allow their easy identification and identifies the quantity and nature of the goods and their particular characteristics (for example, by indicating the engine and chassis number for cars transported in transit or the serial numbers of the goods).
As an exception, sealing will not be necessary (unless the customs office of departure decides otherwise) when:
- the goods are transported by air, and each consignment is affixed with labels showing the number of the accompanying air waybill or the consignment constitutes a cargo unit on which the number of the accompanying air waybill is indicated;
- The goods are transported by rail and the railway companies themselves apply the identification measures.
| CUSTOMS Once the seals have been applied, the customs office of departure will record the number of seals and the identifier of each one in the declaration. If the seals are not required for identification purposes, the customs office of departure will leave this box blank. In that case, the NCTS will automatically print “—” in box D of the DAT. |
Generally, when goods not subject to the transit regime and goods subject to the transit regime are transported by the same means or within the container, and the seal on each of the packages or the sufficiently detailed description of the goods allows their identification, the space reserved for the cargo or the space containing the goods will not be sealed.
Note: Goods shall be separated and clearly labeled to enable easy identification of those transported under the transit regime and those not.
If the seal or precise description of the goods cannot identify the shipment, the customs office of departure will prohibit the goods from being placed in the transit procedure.
Article 38, paragraph 5, of Appendix I to the Convention
Article 301, paragraph 5, of the AE
Seals shall not be removed without the approval of the competent customs authorities.
When a vehicle sealed at the customs office of departure transports goods to different customs offices of destination, under several DATs, and successive unloadings take place at different customs offices of destination located in different countries, the authorities of the intermediate customs offices of destination where the seals are removed in order to unload a part of the cargo must affix new seals and indicate this in box F of the DAT(s). In this case, the customs authorities will ensure that the goods are resealed with a seal that meets at least equivalent security characteristics.
The customs office of destination will indicate this (these) new seal(s) mentioned in the DAT to the customs office of departure in its IE018 message under "New seal info" and "New seal markings".