Originally Posted by
JW76
Doing a combo MR/meeting in Europe this June.
Anyone have experience carrying (and declaring) commercial samples through customs at LHR or CDG? I am debating whether to FedEx or hand-carry a fairly valuable instrument ($25,000) to Europe for a 1-day meeting.
Advice from those who have experience with this is much appreciated.
Hi, sorry to be coming in late to your post. You have some options to avoid being held up by customs. If it is just one item, you can go to a US Customs Field office and register your item. Will need to provide some type of proof that it is yours to carry with you. Such as.... Bill of sale, purchase receipt from retail establishment, a formal appraisal sheet, and would help to offer Serial Number from the item - if it has one. I used to carry two laptops on int'l trips and customs would assume I brought one to sell. So this is one way around it.
Secondly, you could arrange for a Carnet. This is like a passport for your item. Carnet's are not suitable or valid everywhere, but are accepted in roughly 70 countries, and especially throughout the EU. They are not free, with a base fee of around $300. Then, there is an additional fee based on value. With a Carnet, they are good for one year. So if you were traveling with the instrument numerous times over a 12 month period, you are only paying for a one-time-fee.
Can find out about them here:
http://www.atacarnet.com/
And third, can approach a Customshouse Broker to create travel docs for your item. They will be personalized for your item, and you will need to create a Customs Bond (like insurance) to ensure you are bringing the item back to your home country. Generally, these are for one-time-use, so not as flexible as a Carnet.
I hope this is a little bit helpful.