Taking camera overseas, customs?

Hi, I thought I'd read here a while back something about notifying customs before leaving the US that you were taking camera equipment with you so they didn't try to hit you when you come back and say that you bought a bunch of equipment and are trying to bring it back in. Search isn't turning anything up really though. Does anyone remember this or am I just way off base? Taking a trip to Ireland in October and want to make sure I don't have any issues hauling my XSi over and back.

The document you are possibly thinking about is a carnet

To be frank, the average person with one DSLR does not need one.

customs have bigger fish to fry than a tourist's camera equipment

I don't remember seeing anything on the forums about this, but I did hear someone recently about this. It was either on a podcast I listen to or it was in last months issue or Outdoor Photographer. I will have to check my copy of OP to be sure but I think it was Frans Lanting that was talking about it. Of course he was traveling with LOTS of gear. I traveled to South Africa last year with almost all of my gear (40 pound backpack) and didn't have any problems with customs.

I try to travel with as little as possible, just a personal "style" I guess - but I don't think I'd worry about it unless you're carrying many, many thousands of dollars worth of gear like Frans Lanting would have on assignment.

I heard Galen Rowell talk about this too - he's been gone for several years ('02 so pre-TSA) but he used to type up a list with serial numbers, put it in a sealed envelope and have the envelope notarized. Something like that anyway - some sort of proof that he brought this stuff with because he could prove that the letter was written and notarized before he left. Kind of like the poor man's patent; draw your invention, mail it to yourself and don't open it since there's a postmark on it. :) He probably travelled with a huge pile of stuff too; an unusually large amount of gear compared to one body and a lens or two.

I found the article online and here is an excerpt describing what Lanting does. Like Steve said, this is for HUGE amounts of gear.

When he has to leave on a big trip with new gear, Lanting will take his complete equipment kit to the U.S. Customs office at a nearby international airport the day before. He brings along an itemized equipment list with serial numbers printed on multiple copies of his studio stationery along with appropriate customs forms. U.S. Customs agents will check off his gear and verify his equipment lists with official stamps. He has found those official lists to be essential pieces of paper for both entering other countries, as well as for reentering the U.S., and a much easier solution than dealing with complicated and expensive carnet requirements.

Here is a link to the entire article.

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Originally Posted by flyinion

Hi, I thought I'd read here a while back something about notifying customs before leaving the US that you were taking camera equipment with you so they didn't try to hit you when you come back and say that you bought a bunch of equipment and are trying to bring it back in. Search isn't turning anything up really though. Does anyone remember this or am I just way off base? Taking a trip to Ireland in October and want to make sure I don't have any issues hauling my XSi over and back.

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When I traveled, I always carried a list from my insurance company. I never needed it. From Canada to Argentina, no one was the least bit interested. Over the years, the only time I had trouble with camera equipment (not ownership, domestic flight) was in Hawaii where the jerk had me unpack all my cameras and lenses while he "touched" them. Idiot!

Thanks for the info everyone. I think I might have been thinking of seeing this in relation to taking a laptop computer then (had originally been needing to take one). Sorry for the confusion.