The southeastern European country of Montenegro will become the 66th country to join the ATA Carnet System on 1 December 2008.
The ATA Carnet is a ‘passport for goods’. It allows goods temporarily transported across borders to be exempt from customs duties and taxes. ATA Carnets account for billions of US dollars in goods every year.
The addition of Montenegro to the ATA Carnet System is an important part of the mission of the International Chamber of Commerce to facilitate trade across borders. ICC manages the system in cooperation with the World Customs Organization. Its operation is monitored by the ICC World Chambers Federation World ATA Carnet Council. One of the Council’s missions is to make sure that the number of member countries will continue to grow all over the world.
Since gaining independence in 2006, Montenegro has embarked on an economic reform and privatization drive that has led to strong economic growth, which exceeded 7% last year. The country is also a candidate for membership in the European Union.
Practical information on the ATA Carnet System including the list of countries in the ATA Chain can be obtained from the following website:
www.atacarnets.org
.