Carrying a foreign-plated car by tow truck, car carrier, container or ship does not remove the vehicle owner’s customs obligations. The transport contract governs the physical shipment of the vehicle; under which regime it will be admitted into Türkiye, in whose name the formalities will be carried out and how the exit record will be closed must be determined separately. [1, 2]
It is possible for the vehicle owner to travel by air and for the car to arrive later by shipment; however, this plan does not mean an unconditional right of temporary entry for all vehicles. Before shipment, the person’s status, the vehicle’s registration, the chosen customs regime and the representation documents should be examined together. This article deals with carrying the vehicle as cargo and with sending back, by shipment, a vehicle that was previously temporarily imported.
The difference between driving the vehicle in and carrying it as cargo
When a foreign-plated car is driven across the border by a person, that person’s authority to bring in and use the vehicle is assessed. When the car arrives loaded on a carrier, on the other hand, the customs status of the transport vehicle and of the car being carried are treated separately. A truck driver’s authority to carry does not show that the car on the truck can be left in Türkiye for personal use.
Three different plans should not be confused: a person who meets the conditions bringing the vehicle in by driving it under a power of attorney; the vehicle being carried as cargo and taken over through an appropriate temporary import procedure; and the vehicle being imported for permanent use in Türkiye. In the last option, the import permit, technical compliance, taxes and registration requirements call for a separate review. Changing the shipping method is not a way around the restrictions on the permanent import of a used vehicle. [1, 2, 3]
The residency-abroad and personal period conditions generally required for tourist temporary entry do not disappear because the vehicle arrives on a truck. If there is retirement, an assignment or another special status, their conditions are examined under their own regulations. The applicable regime should be determined first, and the transport booking should be made according to that result.
Which customs procedure should be determined before shipment?
Before the vehicle sets out, the port of entry or border gate, the customs office where the procedure will be concluded, the consignee or rightholder, the representative and the intended purpose of use should be clarified. Having the vehicle processed at its first place of arrival and sending it in transit to another customs office are not the same operation. A vehicle that must be carried under customs supervision cannot be freely delivered like an ordinary domestic shipment. [1]
If the shipment is to be made before the vehicle owner arrives, when the person will arrive, who will submit the necessary documents and under what conditions delivery will be made should be set out in writing. It is not correct to apply, without any further basis, to a car the periods for sending before or after that are regulated for passenger baggage. The regime chosen for the vehicle and the declaration procedure are what count.
In addition to the quotation from the logistics company, it is useful to ask the relevant customs administration or an authorized customs broker for an action plan for the specific consignment. This plan should include the plate and chassis details, the rightholder’s status, the mode of transport, the type of representation and the expected delivery conditions. A general “door-to-door delivery” statement should not be read as a guarantee of acceptance or release at customs.
What formalities can the transport company carry out?
Article 5 of the Customs Law distinguishes direct and indirect representation. A direct representative acts in the name and on the account of another, whereas an indirect representative acts in their own name but on the account of another. The representative must state in what capacity they are acting and document their authority. [1]
Under Article 225 of the Law, direct representation of a natural person by a valid power of attorney is possible in the customs formalities for goods not of a commercial quantity and nature and for vehicles intended for private use. Pursuing matters through indirect representation, on the other hand, is carried out by customs brokers within the framework of the relevant professional authorization rules. [1]
Land, sea and air transport operators and representatives of carrier organizations have been granted the authority to pursue, by direct representation, only the transit formalities of the goods they carry. For this reason, a company’s carrying the vehicle does not mean that it can carry out all temporary import or re-export formalities in the same capacity. Who will perform the necessary tasks, and under which separate authorization document, should be shown in the contract. [1]
The authority to pursue the vehicle’s customs formalities is also different from the authority to drive the car in Türkiye. For example, a representative who can submit the paperwork should not be assumed to be authorized to take the vehicle out of the port and use it in the city. If necessary, the final delivery stage should also be planned through the carrier.
Documents to prepare and the function of each
The content of the file varies according to the chosen regime and the method of transport. The table below shows the basic areas of control without claiming that the same documents are mandatory in every case.
| Document or record | Basic function | What it does not show on its own |
|---|---|---|
| Registration certificate and chassis details | The vehicle’s identity and registered owner | A right of temporary use in Türkiye |
| Identity, residence and entry-exit records | The rightholder’s status | That the vehicle has actually left customs |
| Power of attorney and representation document | The authority of the person who will carry out the formalities | Unrestricted freedom to drive and use |
| CMR consignment note or bill of lading | The transport relationship, delivery and route | A temporary import permit or a closed exit record |
| Customs declaration and regime record | The procedure to which the vehicle is subjected at customs | That all damage during transport is insured |
| Delivery and condition report | The vehicle’s physical condition at the time of delivery | That the permit period has been extended |
| Policies | The relevant insurance cover and its limits | That every risk or every driver is covered |
Because the plate may change, the chassis number is particularly important in matching the transport document with the customs records. If the vehicle description, the owner, the consignor, the consignee and the person authorized to receive delivery are different persons, the reason for this and the chain of authority should be clear. Inconsistencies in the documents can cause even a correct shipment to wait at customs.
What matters should be written clearly in the transport contract?
The contract should determine where the vehicle will be picked up, through which customs office it will be carried, who will take it over at the port or bonded warehouse, and how final delivery will take place. Where the actual carrier may be a different company, the subcontracting arrangement and the party to be held liable should also be clarified.
Apart from freight, it should be shown which party bears the costs of loading, unloading, terminal, storage, waiting, brokerage, towing and re-shipment. The free waiting period and the tariff of charges after it should not be left undocumented. How the return carriage of the vehicle and the additional costs will be managed if it is not accepted at customs should also be agreed.
The parties should distinguish between an estimated arrival and a guaranteed delivery date. In particular, if the existing temporary import period for the vehicle is about to expire, the carrier’s schedule should be assessed together with the final date at customs. A delay under the transport contract does not extend the administrative period by itself.
The number of keys, mileage, fuel or electric charge level, existing scratches and items left in the vehicle should be written in the delivery report. Dated photographs should show the four sides of the vehicle, the wheels, the windows and the interior. Because carrying personal belongings together with the vehicle may create separate declaration and transport requirements, these belongings should not be treated as a natural part of the car.
CMR, bill of lading and insurance do not mean the same thing
In international carriage of goods by road for reward, the CMR regime applies if the conditions in Article 1 of the CMR Convention are met. Carrying a vehicle as cargo on a carrier may be the subject of this assessment. The CMR consignment note is important evidence of the transport relationship; it does not replace customs’ temporary import permit. A bill of lading used for sea carriage should likewise not be interpreted for the same purpose. [4]
Articles 4 and 9 of the CMR regulate the evidentiary function of the consignment note with regard to the contract and the goods received. The carrier’s liability for loss, damage or delay is assessed according to the type of carriage and the applicable rules. The CMR provisions do not apply directly to every carriage by ship; in multimodal carriage, the relevant leg and the special conditions are examined separately. [4]
The vehicle’s comprehensive (hull) insurance, the carrier’s liability insurance and cargo insurance are different types of cover. That the carrier is insured does not mean that the vehicle’s value will be paid in full in every case. Loading and unloading, waiting at the port, theft, open carriage, deductibles and the maximum cover should be read separately. This check must be based on the text of the specific policy.
When damage is noticed, it is important to write a specific reservation on the delivery document, take photographs and notify the carrier and the insurer concerned without delay. The notification and limitation periods must be calculated separately according to the type of carriage and the contract that applies. A general freight notification period cannot be applied to all land and sea carriage.
How is a temporarily imported vehicle taken out by shipment?
If the vehicle is already in Türkiye under a temporary import record, the exit plan should be based on the existing record. The permit holder, the record number, the final date, any penalty, detention or judicial measure, and the carrier that will take over the vehicle should be determined. The carrier’s collecting the vehicle from the parking lot does not show that these records have been closed.
It should be clarified with the customs administration by which procedure the vehicle will be directed to exit and which formalities the representative will carry out. If another person will drive the vehicle out, the power of attorney and record conditions in Article 29 of the Communiqué apply. Taking the vehicle out as cargo on a carrier, on the other hand, must be carried out with transport and customs documents appropriate to it. The two methods should not be reduced to the same document list. [1, 2]
If the vehicle cannot be driven because of a breakdown or an accident, a technical report and photographs help in planning the method of exit. However, breaking down does not by itself stop the permit period. If unforeseen circumstances or force majeure will be relied on, the date of the event, its effect on the period and its proof with official documents are assessed separately. Waiting to find a carrier without making the necessary application does not remove the risk of overstaying the period. [2]
If the vehicle is under customs supervision or subject to judicial seizure, the carrier cannot take delivery of the vehicle merely on the basis of a private contract. The release or dispatch procedure of the authority concerned and the delivery conditions must be completed. The details of this situation are covered in the article on customs penalty and detention.
How is it verified that the exit has been completed?
The delivery slip, the loading photograph, the carrier’s location data and the delivery report in the foreign country are useful evidence. However, for the customs obligation to be closed, the relevant exit and tracking records must be checked. The date on which the vehicle was handed to the carrier and the date of its actual exit from the Turkish customs territory may not be the same.
Article 21 of the Communiqué regulates the record-closing procedures that can be carried out afterwards for vehicles whose record has not been closed. Showing that the vehicle is abroad with documents obtained from foreign official authorities, or the relevant official delivery records, is important in this context. It should not be assumed that a one-line letter from a private transport company will in every case replace sufficient official proof. [2]
When the shipment is completed, the file should keep together at least the transport reference, the chassis number, the customs document or confirmation of the actual exit, the status of the relevant tracking record and the delivery information in the foreign country. If there is a dispute, a matching of records between the customs office that handled the entry and the exit customs office should be requested.
Disputes that can be prevented in practice
It is one of the costliest problems to find out, after the vehicle has reached the port, that the rightholder cannot meet the entry conditions. Even if the freight charge has been paid, the vehicle may not be deliverable; waiting and return carriage costs may arise. For this reason, the eligibility review should be made before the loading date.
The second common problem is the difference between the vehicle owner’s statement that “the company was going to do all the formalities” and the company’s statement that it undertook only the carriage. In the contract, customs brokerage, representation, payment of taxes and expenses, delivery of the record-closing document and the conditions under which the job is deemed completed should be shown separately.
The third problem is the tracking record in Türkiye remaining open although the vehicle has actually been sent abroad. This risk cannot be managed by asking only for a delivery photograph at the end of the shipment. Documentation of customs closure should also be written in as one of the conditions for completion of the service.
Conclusion
In bringing a vehicle in and sending it out by shipment, a successful delivery is not limited to the vehicle’s physical movement. The appropriate customs regime, valid representation, the transport and insurance conditions, exit within the period and the closing of the records must be completed together. A clear action plan drawn up before the vehicle is loaded significantly reduces the risk of waiting at the port and of a later penalty dispute.
Related articles: Bringing a Vehicle from Abroad: Conditions, Periods and Customs Procedures; Entering Türkiye with a Vehicle Under a Power of Attorney, Rental or Company Vehicle: Documents and Limits on Use; Retirees Living Abroad Bringing a Vehicle: Length of Stay, Extension of Period and Application Conditions.
Frequently Asked Questions
If the vehicle arrives on a truck, does the 185-day condition fall away?
No. The mode of transport does not by itself remove the conditions that the person must meet for tourist temporary import. The special statuses and exceptions that may apply are examined separately. [1, 3]
Can the vehicle owner come by air and have the car sent later?
A shipment in this manner can be planned; however, before the vehicle is sent, the person’s eligibility, the entry regime, representation and delivery formalities must be determined. Automatic acceptance cannot be inferred for every vehicle. [1, 2]
Is a transport instruction given to a transport company considered a customs power of attorney?
It is not considered so automatically. The type of representation at customs and the necessary authorization document are determined separately. The authority of representatives of carrier organizations regarding transit formalities is not a general authority covering all customs formalities. [1]
Does a CMR document replace the vehicle’s entry permit?
No. The CMR is evidence of the transport relationship and the delivery of the cargo. The formalities required for temporary import or another customs regime are completed separately. [1, 4]
Is it enough to hand the vehicle to the carrier before the period expires?
It should not be considered sufficient on its own. The actual exit and the customs records are what count; the date on which the carrier took the vehicle’s key may not be the date of exit from customs. [1, 2]
If the vehicle has broken down, is the permit period extended automatically?
No. The conditions for an extension, the application and the documents of the event are examined separately. The vehicle’s waiting for a tow truck is not by itself a decision to extend the period. [2]
Does a delivery photograph taken abroad close an open record?
A photograph can help; however, it does not automatically replace the record-closing procedure in the Communiqué and the required official documents. Confirmation of the record’s status should be requested from customs. [2]
Does the carrier’s insurance cover all damage to the vehicle?
This cannot be said without seeing the policy. The carrier’s liability, the cover limit, deductibles and the risks of loading, unloading and waiting must be assessed separately.
Sources
- Customs Law No. 4458 (4458 sayılı Gümrük Kanunu), especially Arts. 5, 36–40, 58, 128–134 and 225–226. Official legislation address; law text copy reviewed.
- Customs General Communiqué on Temporarily Imported Land Vehicles (Geçici İthal Edilen Kara Taşıtlarına İlişkin Gümrük Genel Tebliği, Series No:1), especially Arts. 5–6, 17, 21, 23, 29–32. Ministry legislation index; text copy reviewed.
- Ministry of Trade, Vehicles Accompanying Passengers — Frequently Asked Questions; Decision No. 2009/15481, Arts. 16–20, text copy reviewed.
- CMR Convention, especially Arts. 1–4, 9 and 17. Text of the convention published by UNIDROIT; UNECE e-CMR explanation.