^ Yep, you might have trouble getting your carnet bond back, if your bike does not return to your home country. Even if it does not remain in a carnet country.
Happened to me (sort of) 3,5 years ago, when my bike was coming back from Oz as seafreight. During those 2 months, the AA in Finland simply refused to end the carnet, and return my money, even though it was clearly stamped out of Australia, and after that had not been stamped into any carnet country (and in the counterfoil, there were both in- and out-stamps from all carnet countries that the bike had visited, too, so there should not have been any chance of a claim from any of the carnet countries either).
What they wanted was the customs in Finland to give a stamp to the last page, where there´s a special ´proof of location´. After I got that, the bond was returned within 1-2 weeks. But I still do not quite follow, how it is any of their business, where exactly the vehicle is, if you can prove, that it is not in a carnet-country?!
I don´t know, if it´ll be like this everywhere (or if it´d satisfy them to have that proof of location stamped by the customs of some other non-carnet country?)... but beware of this possibility, if your bike has a carnet, and you plan to return without the bike.
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