Without prejudice to Articles 718 (7), 719 (10) (b) and (11), 721 (5), 722 (3) and 723 (3) and (7), the means of transport referred to in (a) to (d) below shall not be lent, hired, pledged, transferred or put at the disposal of any person established in the Community.
1.The temporary importation procedure shall apply to road vehicles for commercial use.
2.For the purposes of this Article, vehicles shall mean all road vehicles and all trailers which can be coupled to such vehicles.
3.Without prejudice to paragraph 4, admission under the temporary importation procedure referred to in paragraph 1 shall be subject to the condition that the vehicles are:
(a)imported by a person established outside the customs territory of the community or on his behalf;
(b)used for commercial purposes by such a person or on his behalf; and
(c)registered outside the customs territory of the Community in the name of a person established outside that territory. However, if the vehicles are not registered, the above condition shall be deemed to be met where the vehicles in question belong to a person established outside the customs territory of the Community;
(d)used exclusively for transport which begins or ends outside the customs territory of the Community.
4.Where a trailer is coupled to a motor vehicle registered in the customs territory of the Community, the temporary importation procedure may be granted even if the conditions set out in subparagraphs 3 (a) and (b) are not satisfied.
5.The vehicles referred to in paragraph 1 may remain in the customs territory of the Community subject to the conditions laid down in paragraph 3 during the time required for carrying out the operations for which temporary importation is requested, e.g. the carriage, picking up and setting down of passengers, loading and unloading goods, transport and maintenance.
6.For the purposes of subparagraphs 3 (a) and (b), persons acting on behalf of a person established outside the customs territory of the Community must be duly authorized by the person concerned.
7.By way of derogation from paragraph 3:
(a)subject to the requirements of paragraph 6, vehicles for commercial use may be driven by natural persons established in the Customs territory of the Community;
(b)the customs authorities may:
(b)in exceptional cases, allow a person established in the customs territory of the Community to import and use vehicles for commercial use under the temporary importation procedure for a limited period fixed by the said authorities according to the circumstances of the case under consideration,
allow a natural person established in the customs territory of the Community and employed by a person established outside that territory to import and use in that territory, for commercial use, a vehicle belonging to the latter. The vehicle admitted under the temporary importation procedure may also be used for private purposes where such use is occasional, subsidiary to the commercial use and provided for in the contract of employment;
(c)vehicles for commercial use may be used in internal traffic where the provisions in force in the field of transport, in particular those concerning admission and operations, so provide.
1.The temporary importation procedure shall apply to road vehicles for private use.
2.For the purposes of this Article, vehicles means all road vehicles, including caravans and trailers which can be coupled to motor vehicles.
3.The temporary importation procedure referred to in paragraph 1 shall be subject to the condition that the vehicles are:
(a)imported by persons established outside the customs territory of the Community;
(b)used for private purposes by the persons concerned;
(c)registered outside the customs territory of the Community in the name of a person established outside that territory. However, if the vehicles are not registered, the above condition shall be deemed to be met where the vehicles in question belong to a person established outside the customs territory of the Community.
4.By way of derogation from paragraph 3:
(a)the procedure shall also be granted in the case of non-Community vehicles which are registered in the customs territory of the Community under a temporary series with a view to re-exportation and carry a registration number plate issued to a person established outside that territory;
(b)the customs authorities may allow a natural person established in the customs territory of the Community and employed by a person established outside that territory to import and use a vehicle belonging to the latter for private purposes or in the exercise of an activity carried out for consideration, other than those defined as commercial use, on condition that this is provided for in the contract of employment.
5.The temporary importation procedure shall also apply in the following cases:
(a)where a private vehicle registered in the country of normal residence of the user is used regularly in the customs territory of the Community for the journey from his residence to his place of work and vice versa. Authorization to use the procedure shall not be subject to any other time limit;
(b)where a student uses a private vehicle registered in the country of his normal residence in the customs territory of the Community in which the student is staying for the sole purpose of pursuing his studies.
6.Without prejudice to paragraph 5 (a), the vehicles referred to in paragraph 1 may remain in the customs territory of the Community for:
(a)a period of six months, whether continuous or not, in any 12 months;
(b)the period the student stays in the customs territory of the Community in the cases referred to in paragraph 5 (b).
7.Paragraphs 5 (b) and 6 (b) shall apply mutatis mutandis to persons fulfilling assignments of a specified duration.
8.For the purposes of subparagraphs 3 (a) and (b), vehicles for private use shall not be hired, lent or made available following their importation or, if they were on hire, on loan or made available at the time of their importation, they shall not be re-hired or sub-hired or lent or made available to another person in the customs territory of the Community for any purpose other than immediate re-exportation.
9.Pursuant to paragraph 8, vehicles for private use belonging to a hire firm whose registered place of business is outside the customs territory of the Community may be re-hired to a natural person established outside that territory with a view to their re-exportation within a period to be set at the discretion of the customs authorities, where they are within the customs territory of the Community following performance of a contract of hire.
10.Notwithstanding paragraph 8:
(a)the spouse and the relatives in the direct ascending and descending lines of a natural person established outside the customs territory of the Community who have their normal residence outside that territory may use a private vehicle already admitted under the temporary importation procedure;
(b)a vehicle for private use may be used occasionally by a natural person established in the customs territory of the Community where such person is acting on behalf of and on the instructions of the user of the procedure, who is himself in that territory;
11.By way of derogation from Article 717:
(a)the temporary importation procedure provided for in paragraph 9 shall be available to natural persons established in the customs territory of the Community; vehicles may also be brought back from the customs territory of the Community by an employee of the hire firm resident in that territory;
(b)a natural person established in the customs territory of the Community may, for the purpose of returning to the Member State where he has his residence, hire or borrow outside that territory a vehicle for private use meeting the conditions laid down in subparagraph 3 (c). The period within which the vehicle must be re-exported shall be fixed by the customs authorities according to the circumstances of the case under consideration;
(c)the customs authorities may allow the temporary importation procedure referred to in paragraph 4 to be used by natural persons established in the customs territory of the Community preparing to transfer their normal residence out of that territory on the following conditions:
(c)the person concerned shall provide evidence of the transfer of residence by any means acceptable to those authorities,
the vehicle must be exported within three months of the date of registration.
12.For the purposes of subparagraph 6 (a), in order to interrupt the period in which a vehicle imported under the procedure remains in the customs territory of the Community, the user of the temporary importation procedure shall so inform the customs authorities and shall comply with the measures considered appropriate by those authorities to prevent use of the vehicle on a temporary basis.
1.Article 719, excluding paragraph 12 thereof, shall apply mutatis mutandis to saddle or draught animals and the vehicles drawn by them entering the customs territory of the Community.
2.The animals and the vehicles drawn by them referred to in paragraph 1 may remain in the customs territory of the Community for a period of three months.
1.The temporary importation procedure shall apply to means of rail transport.
2.For the purposes of this Article, means of rail transport means all prime movers, railcars and multiple sets, and rolling stock of any description used for the transport of persons or goods.
3.The temporary importation procedure referred to in paragraph 1 shall be subject to the condition that the means of rail transport:
(a)belong to a person established outside the customs territory of the Community;
(b)are registered on a railway network outside the customs territory of the Community.
4.Means of rail transport may remain in the customs territory of the Community for 12 months.
5.By way of derogation from Article 717:
(a)means of rail transport may be placed at the disposal of a person established in the customs territory of the Community on condition that they are used jointly under an agreement whereby each network may use the rolling stock of the other networks as its own rolling stock;
(b)in exceptional cases, the customs authorities may allow a person established in the customs territory of the Community to import and use wagons intended for the carriage of goods which have been placed under the temporary importation procedure for a limited period fixed by the said authorities according to the circumstances of the case under consideration.
1.The temporary importation procedure shall apply to means of air transport.
2.The means of transport referred to in paragraph 1 may remain in the customs territory of the Community during the time required for carrying out the operations for which temporary importation is requested, e.g. the carriage, picking up and setting down of passengers, loading and unloading goods, transport and maintenance.
3.Article 718 (6), (7) and (8) shall apply mutatis mutandis to aircraft for commercial use. In particular, the customs authorities may, in exceptional cases, allow a person established in the customs territory of the Community to import and use aircraft placed under the temporary importation procedure for a limited period fixed by the said authorities according to the circumstances of the case under consideration.
4.Where the means of transport referred to in paragraph 1 are used for private air transport, the conditions laid down in Article 719 (3) shall apply.
5.The means of transport referred to in paragraph 4 may remain in the customs territory of the Community for a period of six months, whether continuous or not, in any 12 months.
6.Article 719 (8) to (12) shall apply mutatis mutandis to aircraft for private use.
1.The temporary importation procedure shall apply to means of sea and inland waterway transport.
2.The means of transport referred to in paragraph 1 may remain in the customs territory of the Community for the time required for carrying out the operations for which temporary admission is requested, e.g. the carriage, picking up and setting down of passengers, loading and unloading goods, transport and maintenance.
3.Article 718 (6) and (7) shall apply mutatis mutandis to vessels for commercial use in sea or inland waterway transport. In particular, the customs authorities may, in exceptional cases, allow a person established in the customs territory of the Community to import and use vessels placed under the temporary importation procedure for a limited period fixed by the said authorities according to the circumstances of the case under consideration.
4.Where the means of transport referred to in paragraph 1 are used for private sea or inland waterway transport, the conditions laid down in Article 719 (3) shall apply.
5.The means of transport referred to in paragraph 4 may remain in the customs territory of the Community for a period of six months, whether continuous or not, in any 12 months.
6.Article 719 (8) to (12) shall apply mutatis mutandis to vessels for private use in sea or inland waterway transport.
7.By way of derogation from Article 717, in exceptional cases where lake harbour infrastructure outside the customs territory of the Community is not adequate to allow the mooring of means of inland waterway transport for private use, the customs authorities may allow a natural person established in the customs territory of the Community to import a vessel placed under the temporary importation procedure and used on the Community part of a lake situated both within the said territory and in the country in which the vessel is registered. The person concerned shall provide evidence of the inadequacy of lake harbour infrastructure by any means acceptable to the customs authorities.
1.The temporary importation procedure shall apply to pallets.
2.Pallets which can be identified may remain in the customs territory of the Community for a period of 12 months, which may be reduced at the request of the person concerned.
3.Pallets other than those referred to in paragraph 2 may remain in the customs territory of the Community for a period of six months, which may be reduced at the request of the person concerned.
1.The temporary importation procedure shall apply to containers approved for transport under customs seal or simply bearing marks when they are brought into the customs territory of the Community on behalf of their owners, their operators or the representatives of either of those.
2.Containers other than those referred to in paragraph 1 shall be admitted under the temporary importation procedure where this is authorized by the customs authorities of the Member State where entry for the procedure is requested.
3.Containers placed under the temporary importation procedure may remain in the customs territory of the Community for a period of 12 months.
4.Containers placed under the temporary importation procedure may be used in internal traffic before being re-exported from the customs territory of the Community. However, the containers may be used only once during each stay in a Member State, for transporting goods which are loaded within the territory of that Member State and are intended to be unloaded within the territory of the same Member State, where the containers would otherwise have to make a journey unladen within that territory.
5.Without prejudice to Article 729 (1), container accessories and normal container equipment may be imported either with a container for subsequent re-export separately or with another container, or separately for subsequent re-export with a container.
1.Article 725 (1) shall apply to containers, whether or not they have been approved for transport under customs seal, on which the following information has been durably marked in an appropriate and clearly visible place:
(a)the identity of the owner or operator;
(b)the identification marks and numbers of the container, given by the owner or operator;
(c)the tare weight of the container, including all its permanently fixed equipment; and
(d)the country to which the container belongs.
However, the information referred to in subparagraph (c) shall not be marked on swap bodies used for combined rail-road transport and the information referred to in subparagraph (d) shall not be marked on containers used for transport by air.
2.The country to which the container belongs may be shown either in full or by means of the ISO alpha-2 country code provided for in International Standard ISO 3166 or by the distinguishing initials used to indicate the country of registration of motor vehicles in international road traffic, or in numbers, in the case of swap bodies used for combined rail-road transport. The identity of the owner or operator may be shown by either his full name or an established identification, symbols such as emblems or flags being excluded.
3.Where a container marked in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2 is shown as belonging to a Member State, it shall be deemed to satisfy the conditions laid down in Articles 9 and 10 of the Treaty.
However, the user of the procedure shall, at the request of the customs authorities of the Member State where the container is kept, provide information concerning the customs status of the container.
1.Containers which:
(a)bear, in addition to the information provided for in Article 726 (1), the following details, which shall be put on the approval plate in accordance with the rules referred to in paragraph 2:
(a)the manufacturer's serial number (manufacturer's number), and
if they are covered by type approval, the identification numbers or letters of the type;
(b)comply with the technical conditions referred to in paragraph 2; and
(c)have been approved by a Member State or by one of the countries listed in Annex 99 in accordance with the procedures provided for in paragraph 2,
shall be recognized as approved for transport under customs seal.
2.The technical rules applying to containers which may be approved for transport under customs seal and the procedures concerning such approval shall be in accordance with those contained respectively in Part I and Part II of Annex 7 to the TIR Convention annexed to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2112/78(1). Any amendment which has entered into force relating to Annex 7 to the TIR Convention shall also apply for the purposes of this Regulation.
These rules shall be applied in accordance with the Explanatory Notes in Part III of the said Annex 7.
3.Where it is found that containers which have been approved do not comply with the technical rules referred to in paragraph 2, or where a container has a major defect and so no longer complies with the standards under which it was approved for transport under customs seal, the customs office shall act in accordance with Annex 100.
Article 725 (4) shall apply in accordance with the explanatory note in Annex 101.
1.The temporary importation procedure shall be granted for normal spare parts, accessories and equipment, including the gear used to stow, secure or protect goods, imported with or separately from the means of transport for which they are intended.
2.Spare parts imported together with or separately from the means of transport for which they are intended shall be used solely to carry out minor repairs and routine maintenance of those means of transport.
3.Routine maintenance operations and repairs to means of transport which have become necessary during the journey to or within the customs territory of the Community shall not constitute a change for the purposes of Article 137 of the Code and may be carried out during the period of temporary importation.
Except where Articles 724 (3) and 725 (2) apply, and without prejudice to Article 728, admission of means of transport under the procedure shall be authorized without written application or authorization.
In that case the act provided for in Article 233 shall be considered to be an application for temporary importation and the absence of intervention by the customs authorities to be an authorization.
Use of the procedure may be authorized for the pallets referred to in Article 724 (2) and the containers referred to in Article 725 (1) in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 730 provided the user of the procedure:
is represented in the customs territory of the Community and provides the designated customs authorities of each Member State in which pallets or containers are to be kept with particulars allowing identification of his representative and the extent of that person's powers;
at the request of the designated customs authorities of the Member State in which pallets or containers are kept, provides information concerning the place and date of entry of the pallets and containers into the customs territory of the Community, the place and date of their exit from that territory and the movements of the pallets or containers within that territory.
1.Where Articles 724 (3) and 725 (2) apply, in order to use the temporary importation procedure the operator or his representative shall apply to the competent customs office of the Member State where the containers or the pallets to be placed under the procedure are brought into the customs territory of the Community.
2.The application shall be made in writing in any form acceptable to the customs authorities. It shall contain the following information:
(a)the name, business name and address of the operator or his representative;
(b)an undertaking to comply with Article 731 (b);
(c)where Article 724 (3) applies, the number and description of the pallets.
3.The application may be of a general nature and cover more than one temporary importation operation.
4.For a single temporary importation operation the application shall be replaced by presentation of the list provided for in Article 736 (1) (b).
1.The customs office to which application is made shall take a decision thereon and shall where appropriate issue ‘a temporary’ importation authorization, hereinafter referred to as the authorization.
2.Authorization shall be granted only for containers which can be identified when they are re-exported.
3.The authorization shall be signed by the competent customs office, which shall retain a copy. It shall indicate inter alia the method by which the operator shall supply the information provided for in Article 731 (b).
4.The authorization may be of a general nature and cover more than one temporary importation operation.
5.For a single temporary importation operation, acceptance by the customs authorities of the list provided for in Article 736 (1) (b) shall be equivalent to authorization.
For the purposes of Article 140 (3) of the Code, Article 694 (2) shall apply to means of transport. Where the user of the procedure can show that the pallets referred to in Article 724 (3) and (4) or the containers referred to in Article 725 (1) and (2) have not been used for some time, such non-use shall be considered to be an exceptional circumstance justifying an extension of the period.
1.Means of transport shall be entered for the temporary importation procedure as provided for in Article 232 (1).
2.Pursuant to Article 88 of the Code, the entry for the temporary importation procedure of means of transport which are not declared shall not be subject to the provision of a security.
1.By way of derogation from Article 735 (1), where the supervising customs office considers at the time of entry for the procedure or when carrying out controls that there is a serious risk of non-compliance with the obligation to re-export a means of transport, the temporary importation procedure shall apply subject to:
(a)production of a declaration made out in accordance with Article 205 (1) or of a document provided for by an international convention as referred to in Article 205 (3);
(b)in the case of containers, an oral declaration as referred to in Article 229 (1), accompanied by a list.
The list shall indicate:
the name, business name and address of the operator or his representative;
the means of identifying the containers;
the number of containers and the quantity and type of normal spare parts, accessories and equipment.
2.By way of derogation from Article 735 (1), items referred to in Article 729 (1) which are imported separately from the means of transport for which they are intended shall be subject to the formalities laid down in paragraph 1 (a), without prejudice to more extensive facilities provided for by agreements in force.
3.By way of derogation from Article 735 (2), where the supervising customs office considers that paragraph 1 applies and that the payment of the customs debt which may be incurred is not certain, the provision of a security shall be required.
1.Means of transport entered for the temporary importation procedure upon discharge of the inward processing procedure shall be treated as means of transport which have been brought into the customs territory of the Community.
2.The date of entry for the temporary importation procedure of the means of transport referred to in paragraph 1 shall be the date on which they are first used under the procedure.
3.For the purposes of drawing up the bill of discharge provided for under the inward processing procedure, the user of the temporary importation procedure shall issue the holder of the inward processing authorization with a certificate replacing the documents provided for in Article 595 (3).
Parts replaced following repairs or maintenance and new spare parts which are damaged or defective shall be assigned to a customs approved treatment or use permitted for the import goods.
In the case of means of rail transport referred to in Article 721 and pallets referred to in Article 724 used jointly under an agreement, the procedure shall also be discharged when means of rail transport of the same type or pallets of the same type as or equivalent value to those which were put at the disposal of a person established in the customs territory of the Community are assigned to a permitted customs-approved treatment or use.
1.Where means of transport are entered for the temporary importation procedure as provided for in Article 735, the procedure shall be discharged:
(a)in the case of re-exportation, in the manner referred to in Article 232 (2);
(b)in the case of declaration for any other customs-approved treatment or use, in the manner specified for declarations for the treatment or use in question.
2.Where Article 736 has been applied, the temporary importation procedure shall be discharged in respect of the means of transport concerned by presenting the means of transport for a permitted customs-approved treatment or use together with the declaration or the document referred to in Article 736 by the time limit laid down by the customs office where the said document was produced or the declaration was lodged.
This section shall not affect provisions in force in the field of transport, in particular those governing conditions of access and operation.
The customs authorities may revoke a temporary importation authorization in respect of means of transport where, without prejudice to derogations provided for by this Chapter or to any more extensive facilities provided for by agreements in force, it finds inter alia:
that means of road transport for commercial use have been used in internal traffic,
that means of transport for private use have been used for commercial purposes in internal traffic,
that means of transport have been hired, lent or made available subsequent to their importation or, if they were on hire, on loan or made available at the time of importation, have been re-hired or sub-hired or lent or made available to another person in the customs territory of the Community for any purpose other than immediate re-exportation.