On 14 November 1975, in Geneva, the Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods under Cover of TIR Carnets was concluded. A single original in English, French and Russian, the three texts equally authentic. Depositary: the Secretary-General of the United Nations. It is not the TIR Convention of 15 January 1959 and not the 1949 TIR Agreement. Article 52: open for signature at the United Nations Office at Geneva from 1 January to 31 December 1976 inclusive; thereafter accession. Customs or economic unions may become Contracting Parties, without the right to vote.

Article 1: a “TIR operation” means the transport of goods from a Customs office of departure to a Customs office of destination under the procedure laid down in the Convention; the guaranteeing association is approved by the Customs authorities. Article 2: the Convention applies to transport without intermediate reloading, in road vehicles, combinations of vehicles or containers, across one or more frontiers, provided that some portion of the journey is made by road. Article 3: approved vehicles or containers, plus the guarantee of associations under article 6 and a TIR carnet conforming to annex 1. Article 4: goods shall not be subjected to the payment or deposit of import or export duties and taxes at Customs offices en route. Article 5: as a general rule, goods in sealed vehicles or containers shall not be examined at those offices; examination remains possible in exceptional cases, particularly when irregularity is suspected.

Article 6: each Contracting Party may authorize associations to issue TIR carnets, either directly or through corresponding associations, and to act as guarantors; an association shall not be approved unless its guarantee also covers operations under carnets issued by foreign associations affiliated to the same international organization. Article 8: the association undertakes to pay the duties and taxes, together with any default interest, in the country where an irregularity has been noted; it is liable jointly and severally with the persons from whom the sums are due; each Party determines the maximum sum per carnet. Article 11: the association must be notified in writing within one year of acceptance of the carnet (two years where the certificate of discharge was obtained improperly or fraudulently); the claim for payment comes at the earliest three months and at the latest two years after that information; the association has three months in which to pay.

Article 12: road vehicles must fulfil annex 2 and be approved according to annex 3, with a certificate conforming to annex 4. Article 13: containers according to annex 7; those approved under the Customs Convention on Containers, 1972, are accepted without further approval. Article 16: a rectangular plate bearing the inscription “TIR”, conforming to annex 5, shall be affixed to the front and another to the rear, clearly visible and removable. Article 17: a single carnet for each vehicle or container, valid for one journey only. Article 18: offices of departure in only one country, offices of destination in not more than two, four in all. Article 22: intact seals of other Parties are accepted and enjoy the same legal protection as national seals. Article 26: the operation is suspended in the territory of a State which is not a Party, then resumed if the seals have remained intact.

Articles 29–35: heavy or bulky goods, as defined in article 1 (k), may, if the office of departure so decides, be carried in non-sealed vehicles or containers; the carnet shall bear the endorsement “heavy or bulky goods” in English or in French. Articles 36–42: a breach renders the offender liable to the penalties of the country where the offence was committed; an irregularity whose territory cannot be established is deemed committed where it is detected; minor discrepancies in time-limits or routes are disregarded when the operation is otherwise in order; duties are waived if goods specified on the manifest have been destroyed or irrecoverably lost by accident or force majeure. Article 47: national restrictions on grounds of public morality, public security, hygiene or public health, or for veterinary or phytopathological reasons, remain. Article 48: a Customs or economic union may enact special provisions, provided they do not attenuate the facilities of the Convention. The annexes form an integral part of the Convention.

Article 53: the Convention enters into force six months after five States have signed it without reservation of ratification, acceptance or approval or have deposited their instruments. UNTS 1079 I-16510: 20 March 1978, after France, Sweden, Malta, Austria and Yugoslavia. Article 56: upon its entry into force, this Convention terminates and replaces, in relations between its Contracting Parties, the TIR Convention, 1959. Article 58: the only reservation permitted concerns article 57, paragraphs 2 to 6 (compulsory arbitration). Article 64: after 31 December 1976, the original is deposited with the Secretary-General. It is not later Annex 11 on eTIR, and it is not a GATT-type tariff agreement.

Image: Palace of Nations, Geneva, place of conclusion; Vassil, 20 October 2014; CC0, Wikimedia Commons. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: TIR Convention. Treaty text: Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods under Cover of TIR Carnets, Geneva, 14 November 1975 (UNTS 1079 I-16510).