e-ATA Carnet Is Live: What Carriers Need to Know in 2026

For carriers handling cross-border shipments, customs documentation can have a direct impact on transit time. Since 1 June 2026, one of the most established documents used for temporary admission has started moving from paper to digital.

The e-ATA Carnet is now officially accepted across all 27 EU Member States, as well as Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. That means drivers, dispatchers and transport companies handling exhibition equipment, commercial samples or professional equipment may increasingly encounter a QR code instead of the familiar paper carnet at customs.

What exactly is changing?

The ATA Carnet allows goods to enter another country temporarily without the usual payment of import duties and taxes, provided the conditions of the temporary admission procedure are met. It is commonly used for goods such as trade fair equipment, commercial samples and professional equipment and can be valid for up to one year. The ATA system currently operates across approximately 80 countries and customs territories.

Until now, the process has largely depended on a physical document that travelled with the goods.

The e-ATA Carnet digitalises that process. The holder receives the carnet digitally and manages it through the ICC ATA Carnet App or desktop application. Before a border crossing, a declaration for the relevant movement is prepared and a unique QR code is generated. Customs can scan the code, verify the goods and record the transaction electronically.

For transport operations, however, the important point is not simply that paper disappears.

It is that the correct digital carnet must be available at the correct customs checkpoint and for the correct movement.

What does the e-ATA Carnet mean for carriers?

The carnet is primarily the responsibility of its holder, but carriers can become directly involved in the process when transporting the goods or acting as the holder’s representative.

ICC’s digital system allows a carnet holder to share a digital carnet with a representative. At the border, the holder or representative can then present the relevant QR code to Customs.

For dispatch and transport planning, this makes several checks worth adding before collection:

• Confirm whether the shipment is moving under temporary admission using an ATA Carnet.
• Check which countries and customs territories are included in the route.
• Confirm whether the carnet has been issued in digital, paper or both formats.
• Establish who will present the carnet at Customs and make sure the required QR code or documentation is accessible during the border crossing.
• Make sure the cargo loaded corresponds with the goods covered by the carnet.
• Do not assume the e-ATA replaces other transport, customs or licensing requirements that may apply to the shipment.

Correct customs processing remains critical. For example, UK guidance states that the carnet must be presented whenever the goods are imported or exported and that failure to have the digital carnet scanned or the paper carnet stamped can result in duties, taxes or penalties.

Paper is not disappearing everywhere at once

This is particularly important for international road freight.

The 2026 launch covers 30 countries: the EU27, Norway, Switzerland and the UK. Other ATA countries will transition progressively between June 2026 and the end of 2027. ICC expects the procedure to become fully digital worldwide from 1 January 2028.

During this transition period, a single transport lane may therefore involve countries with different levels of digital readiness.

Issuing chambers can provide a paper carnet, a digital carnet or both, depending on the planned itinerary. ICC specifically advises users to check the readiness of every country and customs territory involved before departure.

For carriers, this makes route and document verification before pickup especially important. A digital process at the first border does not automatically mean that every subsequent customs point on the route will use the same procedure.

Digital customs processes need digital transport workflows

The e-ATA rollout is another example of freight processes moving away from paper, spreadsheets and fragmented communication.

The same principle applies to transport procurement.

With Transportly 4Shipper, shippers can send transport RFQs to their trusted carriers, compare offers and keep transport communication and related documents connected to the same request. Spot shipments, tenders and contract transport can be managed within one procurement workflow rather than across separate emails, spreadsheets and communication channels.

For carriers, that means receiving clearer transport requirements and having a traceable communication channel with the customer when shipment details, documentation or conditions change.

4Shipper does not replace the official e-ATA Carnet system or customs procedures. The carnet itself remains managed through the relevant issuing organisation and ICC’s digital infrastructure. But when customs processes become digital, keeping the commercial and operational side of the transport digital as well makes cross-border execution easier to coordinate.

The e-ATA Carnet is already live in the EU. For carriers operating international lanes, now is the right time to make sure dispatchers and drivers know what to expect at the next customs checkpoint.

Sources: 
Digital ATA Carnet launches in 30 countries – ICC (2023)
Guidance on Special Procedures UCC – European Commission