(a) Certification of containers and road vehicles for international transport under Customs seal is voluntary. This chapter does not require certification of containers and road vehicles.

(b) The Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods Under Cover of TIR Carnets (TIR Convention), January 15, 1959 (20 UST 184, TIAS 6633), requires that the approval of road vehicles be made by competent authorities of the country in which the owner or carrier is a resident or is established, and that containers should be either similarly approved, or approved by the competent authority of the country where it is first used for transport under Customs seal. The Customs Convention on Containers, May 18, 1956 (20 UST 301, TIAS 6634), requires that the approval of containers be made by competent authorities of the country in which the owner is a resident or is established or by those of the country where the container is used for the first time for transport under Customs seal. The TIR Convention, 1975, generally provides that a road vehicle, for which approval at a stage after manufacture is desired, shall be approved by the competent authority where the vehicle owner or operator is established or located, or where the vehicle is registered. Such approval under the TIR Convention, 1975, or, for containers, the Customs Convention on Containers, 1972, may be accomplished by the competent authority of the country in which the owner or operator is able to produce the conveyance. The 1975 TIR Convention and the Customs Convention on Containers, 1972, also provide that the Certifying Authority of the country of manufacture, if that country is a contracting party to the Convention, may approve a series of road vehicles or containers presented for design type approval. The procedures for applying for certification are contained in §§115.28, 115.38, 115.49, and 115.63 of this part.