Flying to South Africa- carnet?
 

Am flying my bike (UK registered R1100GS) to CPT next April and I am trying to find out if I can get the bike through customs on a TIP or whether I need a CDP. Reading other threads here it seems that a CDP is not really necessary for bikes crossing land borders- but maybe coming in to an international airport is different?

Airports tend to be the easiest border crossings (for your wheeled "cargo" as well)! CdP probably not required. SA should issue you a proper TIP for the bike. In fact most of Africa is fine w/o a Carnet. Egypt, Mauritania & Senegal usually can be a bit hassle, but also doable w/o if you willing to pay and hassle around a bit more.

Safe roads,
Margus

We're are planning to do the 'easier' countries- SA, Nam, Zam, Malawi, Kenya, Tanzania and maybe Uganda and Rwanda and it seems a TIP will be enough in those countries, but first the bike has to be extracted from CPT...

Just to revisit this, I got this from the shipping agent I'm using in SA. OK, I realise he probably wants an easy life, but he does consider the ups and downs of carnets:

"Though Carnets seem a pain and expensive, it’s still the easiest and quickest to clear as no formal entry is needed. We just schedule an appointment to inspect then collect Carnet when stamped, normally later on inspection day. Then the vehicle is free to go.

I also read the HU bits about traveling without a carnet through SA, but that guy entered via Namibia and exited via Mozambique land borders, where frankly they have no clue and we was dealt with by someone particularly clueless.
Read a hundred stories and you'll find a hundred experts.

If he arrived in Cape Town without a temporary import permit (TIP) obtained crossing from Namibia and asked us to ship or air it out of SA we would not be able to as we'd have no proof of import to acquit.

We had 4 Aussie bikers who were also waved through and Customs in Cape Town told me to tell them to drive back to the border (800km) and get a TIP. Thank god they had written their details into some register and after 20 phone calls to the customs at the border I got that page copied and scanned to me reluctantly and customs CTN grudgingly then issued a TIP so that we could do the export. So the Aussies got stuck in Cape Town for a week longer than planned.

I think the problem is that on entering SA from the North, it’s expected that where they entered the Southern African customs union they would be given a TIP but no one seems to ask.

Our advice to anyone who does not have a carnet is that on crossing into SA via land, they must INSIST on a temporary import permit if they plan to ship out. If they get told they don't need it they must still insist. If they plan to drive back out, then they can rely on clueless customs people to wave them through in and out. Even then, they are supposed to be asked to pay a customs deposit. Some get asked and most don't it seems.

For entry by air or sea as temporary import without a carnet, a traveller will have to pay a deposit covering taxes (average 22 to 24 percent), refundable on export. This is based on the highest of 3 valuations that must be provided ( adds off Gumtree, Autotrader are accepted).

If we then ship it out again, customs must inspect, we clear, and then apply for the refund. It takes about 3 weeks and we charge for this at 5 percent of the refund or minimum R1000 cause it’s a pain to process.

But if they drive out North it’s a bit more tricky. We then have to give them paperwork to be endorsed after inspection at the border and couriered back to us so that we can prove export and apply for the refund.

So in short, carnets are way easier indeed.
Temporary import by air or sea will attract the refundable deposit payment.
For entering SA by road without a carnet and planning to ship out, they must get a TIP at the border."