Key Benefits:
Original text
(State on 20 February 2013)
For the purposes of this Convention:
(1) Subject to the other conditions provided for in this Convention, each Contracting State shall grant, on a temporary basis, entry fees and taxes of entry to the personal effects imported by a tourist, provided that such effects are intended For personal use, whether the tourist carries them on him or in the accompanying luggage, that there is no reason to fear an abuse, and that these effects are re-exported by the tourist when he leaves the country.
2. "Personal effects" means all clothing and other items, whether new or used, which a tourist may personally and reasonably require, having regard to all the circumstances of his or her voyage, excluding all goods Imported for commercial purposes.
3. Personal effects shall include, among other items, the following items, provided that they may be considered as being in use:
1 Introduced with effect to June 6, 1967 (RO 1975 1245).
Subject to the other conditions provided for in this Convention, each of the Contracting States shall grant entry duty free of the following goods when a tourist imports them for their personal use, provided that they Carries with him or his hand luggage and there is no reason to fear abuse:
Subject to the other conditions provided for in this Convention, each of the Contracting States shall accord to the tourist, provided that there is no reason to fear abuse:
Each of the Contracting States may require that those of the objects referred to in Article 2 be placed, where they have a high value, under the cover of a temporary importation title.
The Contracting States shall endeavour not to establish customs formalities which may have the effect of impeding the development of international tourism.
With a view to speeding up the completion of customs formalities, the neighbouring Contracting States will endeavour to achieve the juxtaposition of their respective customs facilities and to coincide the opening hours of the offices and posts Of corresponding customs.
The provisions of this Convention shall not affect the application of police and other regulations concerning the importation, possession and use of weapons and ammunition.
Each Contracting State shall recognize that the prohibitions it imposes on the import or export of the objects covered by this Convention shall apply only to the extent that such prohibitions are based on considerations that Are not of an economic nature, such as considerations of public morality, public safety, hygiene or public health, or of a veterinary or phytopathological nature.
The franchises and other facilities provided for in this Convention shall not apply to border traffic.
Nor are they automatically applicable:
In the event of fraud, violation or abuse, the contracting states have the right to take legal action to recover the entry fees and taxes that may be due, as well as to impose penalties that the persons receiving Franchises and other facilities would have been incurred.
Any infringement of the provisions of this Convention, any substitution, false declaration or manoeuvre which has the effect of unduly benefiting a person or an object of the import regime provided for in this Convention shall expose the In the country where the offence was committed, the penalties provided for in the legislation of that country.
Nothing in this Convention shall exclude the right of Contracting States which form a customs or economic union to provide for special rules applicable to persons resident in the countries forming part of that Union.
This Convention shall, until 31 December 1954, be open for signature on behalf of any State Member of the United Nations and of any other State invited to participate in the United Nations Conference on Customs Formalities Concerning the temporary importation of passenger vehicles and tourism, held in New York in May and June 1954 and hereinafter referred to as "the Conference".
2. This Convention shall be ratified and the instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
1. From 1 Er January 1955, any State referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 14 and any other State which has been invited by the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations may accede to this Convention. Membership will also be possible on behalf of any Territory under which the United Nations is the administering authority.
(2) Accession shall be made by the deposit of an instrument of accession with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
(1) This Convention shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after the date of the deposit of the fifteenth instrument of ratification or accession without reservation or with reservations accepted under the conditions laid down in Article 20.
2. For each State which has ratified or acceded to it after the date of deposit of the fifteenth instrument of ratification or accession provided for in the preceding paragraph, the Convention shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after the date of deposit, By that State, its instrument of ratification or accession without reservations or with reservations accepted in accordance with the conditions laid down in Article 20.
After the present Convention has been in force for three years, any Contracting State may denounce it by notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
(2) The denunciation shall take effect fifteen months after the date on which the Secretary-General of the United Nations has received such notification.
This Convention shall cease to have effect if, at any time after its entry into force, the number of Contracting States is less than eight for a period of twelve consecutive months.
(1) Any State may, upon the deposit of its instrument of ratification or accession, or at any time thereafter, declare, by notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, that this Convention shall apply to Any or all of the territories it represents internationally. The Convention shall be applicable to the territories mentioned in the notification either from the ninetieth day after receipt of that notification by the Secretary-General if the notification is not accompanied by a reservation, or from the date of the notification. Ninetieth day after the notification has taken effect, in accordance with Article 20, or on the date on which the Convention enters into force for the State in question, whichever is the later.
(2) Any State which has made, in accordance with the preceding paragraph, a declaration which has the effect of making this Convention applicable to a territory which it represents on the international level may, in accordance with Article 17, denounce the Convention in respect of that Territory alone.
(1) Reservations to this Convention made before the signature of the Final Act shall be admissible if they have been accepted by the Conference by a majority of its members and recorded in the Final Act.
(2) Reservations to this Convention presented after the signature of the Final Act shall not be admissible if one third of the signatory States or the Contracting States object to it under the conditions set out below.
3. The text of any reservation submitted by a State to the Secretary-General of the United Nations upon signature, the deposit of an instrument of ratification or accession, or any notification provided for in Article 19, shall be communicated by The Secretary-General to all States that have signed, ratified or acceded to the Convention. The reservation will not be accepted if one third of those States raise an objection within ninety days of the date of the communication. The Secretary-General shall inform all States referred to in this paragraph of any objections to it, as well as the acceptance or rejection of the reservation.
4. Any objection formulated by a State which has signed the Convention but will not have ratified it shall cease to have effect if the objecting State does not ratify the Convention within nine months from the date of that objection. If the fact that an objection ceases to have effect shall result in the acceptance of the reservation in accordance with the preceding paragraph, the Secretary-General shall inform the States referred to in that paragraph. Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the text of a reservation shall not be communicated to a signatory State which has not ratified the Convention within three years of the date of signature on its behalf.
The State presenting the reservation may withdraw it within twelve months from the date of the communication of the Secretary-General referred to in paragraph 3 announcing the rejection of the reservation in accordance with the procedure laid down in that paragraph. The instrument of ratification or accession or, as the case may be, the notification provided for in Article 19, shall take effect for that State from the date of withdrawal. Pending the withdrawal, the instrument or, as the case may be, the notification shall have no effect unless, in application of the provisions of paragraph 4, the reservation is subsequently accepted.
6. Reservations accepted in accordance with this Article may be withdrawn at any time by notification addressed to the Secretary-General.
7. The Contracting States shall not be obliged to grant the author State of a reservation the benefits provided for in the provisions of the Convention which have been the subject of that reservation. Any State which uses this option shall notify the Secretary-General. The Secretary-General shall then inform the signatory and contracting states.
1. Any dispute between two or more Contracting States concerning the interpretation or application of this Convention shall, as far as possible, be settled by negotiation between the States in dispute.
(2) Any dispute which has not been settled by negotiation shall be referred to arbitration if any of the Contracting States in dispute so requests and shall, accordingly, be referred to one or more arbitrators chosen by mutual agreement States in dispute. If, within three months of the date of the request for arbitration, the States in issue are unable to agree on the choice of an arbitrator or arbitrators, any of those States may request the President of the International Court of Justice to Designate a single arbitrator to which the dispute will be referred for decision.
The award of the arbitrator or arbitrators appointed in accordance with the preceding paragraph shall be binding on the Contracting States concerned.
After the present Convention has been in force for three years, any Contracting State may, by notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, request the convening of a conference to review the Present Convention. The Secretary-General shall notify all Contracting States of this request and shall convene a Review Conference if, within four months of the date of the notification addressed by him, at least half of the Contracting States shall notify him Assent to this request.
(2) If a conference is convened in accordance with the preceding paragraph, the Secretary-General shall notify all Contracting States and invite them to submit, within a period of three months, the proposals which they would like to see examined by the Conference. The Secretary-General shall communicate to all Contracting States the provisional agenda of the Conference, as well as the text of those proposals, at least three months before the opening date of the Conference.
The Secretary-General shall invite to any conference convened in accordance with this article all Contracting States and all other States Members of the United Nations or of one of the specialized agencies.
1. Any Contracting State may propose one or more amendments to this Convention. The text of any proposed amendment shall be communicated to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall transmit it to all Contracting States.
(2) Any draft amendment which has been transmitted in accordance with the preceding paragraph shall be deemed to have been accepted if no Contracting State shall lodge an objection within six months of the date on which the Secretary-General has transmitted the Amendment.
The Secretary-General shall make known to all Contracting States as soon as possible if an objection has been raised against the draft amendment and, in the absence of objection, the amendment shall enter into force for all Contracting States Months after the expiry of the six-month period referred to in the preceding paragraph.
The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall notify all States Members of the United Nations and all other States invited to participate in the Conference:
The original of this Convention shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall transmit certified copies to all Members of the United Nations and to all other invited States To participate in the Conference.
In witness whereof , the undersigned, duly authorized, have signed this Convention.
Done at New York, on the fourth of June mil nine hundred and fifty-four, in one copy, in the English, French and Spanish languages, the three texts being equally authentic.
The Secretary-General shall be invited to establish, in this Convention, a translation into the authoritative Chinese and Russian languages, and to attach the Chinese and Russian texts to the English, Spanish and French texts when transmitting them to the States Certified copies referred to in Article 25 of this Convention.
(Suivent signatures)
States Parties |
Ratification Accession (A) Declaration of succession (S) |
Entry into force |
||
Albania |
August 9 |
2010 A |
7 November |
2010 |
Algeria * |
October 31 |
1963 A |
29 January |
1964 |
Germany |
16 September |
1957 |
15 December |
1957 |
Argentina |
19 December |
1986 |
19 March |
1987 |
Australia |
6 January |
1967 A |
April 6 |
1967 |
Austria |
30 March |
1956 |
11 September |
1957 |
Barbados |
March 5 |
1971 S |
30 November |
1966 |
Belgium |
21 February |
1955 |
11 September |
1957 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina |
1 Er September |
1993 S |
6 March |
1992 |
Bulgaria |
7 October |
1959 A |
5 January |
1960 |
Cambodia |
29 November |
1955 |
11 September |
1957 |
Canada |
1 Er June |
1955 A |
11 September |
1957 |
Chile |
August 15 |
1974 A |
13 November |
1974 |
China |
||||
Hong Kong |
6 June |
1997 |
1 Er July |
1997 |
Macao |
19 October |
1999 |
20 December |
1999 |
Cyprus |
May 16 |
1963 S |
August 16 |
1960 |
Costa Rica |
4 September |
1963 |
3 December |
1963 |
Croatia |
August 31 |
1994 S |
8 October |
1991 |
Cuba * |
23 October |
1963 |
21 January |
1964 |
Denmark * |
13 October |
1955 A |
11 September |
1957 |
Egypt * |
April 4 |
1957 |
11 September |
1957 |
El Salvador |
18 June |
1958 A |
16 September |
1958 |
Ecuador |
August 30 |
1962 |
28 November |
1962 |
Spain |
August 18 |
1958 |
16 November |
1958 |
United States |
July 25 |
1956 |
11 September |
1957 |
U.S. Virgin Islands |
July 25 |
1956 A |
11 September |
1957 |
Puerto Rico |
July 25 |
1956 A |
11 September |
1957 |
Fiji |
October 31 |
1972 S |
10 October |
1970 |
Finland * |
21 June |
1962 A |
19 September |
1962 |
France |
24 April |
1959 |
July 23 |
1959 |
Ghana * |
June 16 |
1958 A |
September 14 |
1958 |
Greece * |
15 January |
1974 A |
15 April |
1974 |
Haiti * |
12 February |
1958 |
13 May |
1958 |
Hungary * |
29 October |
1963 A |
27 January |
1964 |
India |
5 May |
1958 |
August 3 |
1958 |
Iran |
3 April |
1968 A |
July 2 |
1968 |
Ireland |
August 14 |
1967 A |
12 November |
1967 |
Israel |
1 Er August |
1957 A |
30 October |
1957 |
Italy |
12 February |
1958 |
13 May |
1958 |
Jamaica |
11 November |
1963 S |
August 6 |
1962 |
Japan |
7 September |
1955 |
11 September |
1957 |
Jordan |
18 December |
1957 A |
18 March |
1958 |
Lebanon |
March 16 |
1971 A |
14 June |
1971 |
Liberia |
16 September |
2005 A |
15 December |
2005 |
Liechtenstein |
23 May |
1956 |
11 September |
1957 |
Lithuania |
1 Er December |
2005 A |
1 Er March |
2006 |
Luxembourg |
21 November |
1956 |
11 September |
1957 |
Malaysia |
7 May |
1958 S |
11 September |
1957 |
Mali |
1 Er August |
1973 A |
30 October |
1973 |
Malta |
3 January |
1966 S |
21 September |
1964 |
Morocco |
September 25 |
1957 A |
24 December |
1957 |
Mauritius |
18 July |
1969 S |
12 March |
1968 |
Mexico |
13 June |
1957 |
11 September |
1957 |
Montenegro |
23 October |
2006 S |
3 June |
2006 |
Nepal |
21 September |
1960 A |
20 December |
1960 |
Nigeria |
26 June |
1961 S |
1 Er October |
1960 |
Norway |
10 October |
1961 A |
8 January |
1962 |
New Zealand |
August 17 |
1962 A |
15 November |
1962 |
Uganda * |
15 April |
1965 A |
July 14 |
1965 |
Netherlands |
7 March |
1958 |
5 June |
1958 |
Aruba |
7 March |
1958 A |
5 June |
1958 |
Curaçao |
7 March |
1958 A |
5 June |
1958 |
Caribbean (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba) |
7 March |
1958 A |
5 June |
1958 |
Sint Maarten |
7 March |
1958 A |
5 June |
1958 |
Peru |
16 January |
1959 A |
April 16 |
1959 |
Philippines |
February 9 |
1960 |
9 May |
1960 |
Poland * |
March 16 |
1960 A |
14 June |
1960 |
Portugal * |
18 September |
1958 |
17 December |
1958 |
Portuguese Overseas Territories |
18 September |
1958 A |
17 December |
1958 |
Central African Republic |
15 October |
1962 A |
13 January |
1963 |
Romania * |
26 January |
1961 A |
April 26 |
1961 |
United Kingdom |
February 27 |
1956 |
11 September |
1957 |
Anguilla |
9 January |
1961 A |
April 9 |
1961 |
Bermuda |
14 January |
1958 A |
April 14 |
1958 |
Gibraltar |
14 January |
1958 A |
April 14 |
1958 |
British Virgin Islands |
14 January |
1958 A |
April 14 |
1958 |
Montserrat |
14 January |
1958 A |
April 14 |
1958 |
Saint Kitts and Nevis (Saint Kitts and Nevis) |
9 January |
1961 A |
April 9 |
1961 |
St. Helena and Dependencies (Ascension and Tristan da Cunha) |
14 January |
1958 A |
April 14 |
1958 |
Russia * |
August 17 |
1959 A |
15 November |
1959 |
Rwanda |
1 Er December |
1964 S |
1 Er July |
1962 |
Solomon Islands |
3 September |
1981 S |
7 July |
1978 |
Senegal * |
19 April |
1972 A |
18 July |
1972 |
Serbia |
12 March |
2001 S |
April 27 |
1992 |
Sierra Leone |
13 March |
1962 S |
April 27 |
1961 |
Slovenia |
July 6 |
1992 S |
25 June |
1991 |
Sri Lanka |
28 November |
1955 |
11 September |
1957 |
Sweden * |
11 June |
1957 |
11 September |
1957 |
Switzerland |
23 May |
1956 |
11 September |
1957 |
Syria * |
26 March |
1959 A |
24 June |
1959 |
Tanzania * |
22 June |
1964 A |
September 20 |
1964 |
Tonga |
11 November |
1977 S |
4 June |
1970 |
Trinidad and Tobago |
April 11 |
1966 S |
August 31 |
1962 |
Tunisia * |
20 June |
1974 A |
18 September |
1974 |
Turkey |
April 26 |
1983 A |
July 25 |
1983 |
Uruguay |
8 September |
1967 |
7 December |
1967 |
Vietnam |
31 January |
1956 A |
11 September |
1957 |
* |
Reservations and declarations. |
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Reservations and declarations are not published in the RO. The texts in English and French can be found at the United Nations Internet site: http://treaties.un.org or obtained from the Directorate of Public International Law (DDIP), International Treaty Section, 3003 Berne. |
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1 RO 1958 731
2 RO 1958 732, 1975 1245, 1982 1443, 1983 1320, 1987 1023, 2004 3725, 2008 4129, 2013 759. A version of the updated scope of application is published on the DFAE website (www.dfae.admin.ch/traites).