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If you transport goods commercially with motor vehicles whose permissible total weight (including trailer) is more than 3.5 tons, you must apply for a permit from the local traffic authority.

Road haulage is the commercial or paid transportation of goods with motor vehicles that have a permissible total weight of more than 3.5 tons, including trailers.

Commercial road haulage is generally subject to licensing, but so-called "own-account haulage", i.e. road haulage for a company's own purposes, is not subject to licensing under certain conditions.

If the vehicles are only used throughout Germany, you require a permit for commercial road haulage (in accordance with Section 3 of the Road Haulage Act). For cross-border journeys within the European Union, the European Economic Area (EEA)* and Switzerland, you need a Community license (EU license) and, if applicable, a driver's certificate for nationals of a third country.

You can also use the Community license for transports within Germany and the EEA states ("cabotage transports").

For commercial road haulage with countries outside the European Economic Area, you require bilateral permits or so-called CEMT permits in addition to the national permit for the German part of the route (permit for commercial road haulage or Community license) for parts of the route in third countries.

If you are driving in or through Switzerland as part of commercial road haulage, you need a valid Community license.

The permit for commercial road haulage and the Community license can be issued for a limited period, subject to conditions or with conditions. The national permit can be issued for a period of validity of up to 10 years. The Community license is issued for 5 years.

Note:

No permit is required for so-called own-account transport. However, your company must be registered with the Federal Office for Goods Transport. You can obtain the address from your licensing authority.

• Documents for the applicant company:
  • Extract from the commercial, partnership, cooperative or association register, if a corresponding entry exists
  • for GbR companies: Extract from the GbR contract
  • Proof of authorization to represent the company if a person other than the applicant is professionally qualified to do so
  • Proof of reliability:
    • Certificate of good conduct for the person authorized to represent the company (not older than three months)
    • Information from the central trade register for the person authorized to represent (not older than three months)
    • Information from the driving aptitude register for the person authorized to represent (not older than three months)
  • Proof of financial capacity:
    • Clearance certificate from the tax office (not older than three months)
    • Clearance certificate from the municipality (not older than three months)
    • Clearance certificate from the health insurance company (not older than three months)
    • Clearance certificate from the Berufsgenossenschaft Verkehrswirtschaft, Post-Logistik, Telekommunikation (BG Verkehr) (not older than three months)
    • Equity certificate as proof of financial capacity in commercial road haulage (Annex 2 of the General Administrative Regulation on Road Haulage Law (GüKVwV)) and
    • if necessary, additional certificate to prove financial capacity in commercial road haulage (Annex 3 of the General Administrative Regulation on Road Haulage Law (GüKVwV))
  • Proof of professional aptitude:
    • Certificate of having passed the IHK professional qualification examination or an equivalent recognized final examination or
    • Proof of at least 10 years of managerial activity in a road haulage company (the Chamber of Industry and Commerce responsible for you will check whether the requirements are met)
• Documents for persons who are appointed to manage the road haulage business (transport manager):
  • Proof of reliability:
    • Certificate of good conduct (not older than three months)
    • Information from the central trade register (not older than three months)
    • Information from the driving aptitude register (not older than three months)
  • Proof of professional aptitude:
    • Certificate of having passed the IHK professional qualification examination or an equivalent recognized final examination or
    • Proof of at least 10 years of managerial activity in a road haulage company (the Chamber of Industry and Commerce responsible for you will check whether the requirements are met)
  • Proof of financial capacity:
    • Clearance certificate from the health insurance company (not older than three months)
  • Proof of employment

The permit is granted to an entrepreneur whose company is actually and permanently based in Germany if

• the entrepreneur and the person appointed to manage the road haulage business (transport manager) are reliable,
• the financial capacity of the company is guaranteed and
• the entrepreneur or the person appointed to manage the road haulage business is professionally qualified.

The company requires equity capital plus reserves. The amount of capital is determined by the number of vehicles intended for use. For the first vehicle, the entrepreneur requires equity capital of EUR 9,000, for each additional vehicle EUR 5,000. This also applies to the use of rental vehicles.

A person is professionally qualified if he or she has passed a professional qualification test. All final examinations previously recognized as equivalent continue to be considered equivalent if they were started or completed before 4 December 2011.

Persons who have worked continuously (at least ten years) in a managerial position in a road haulage company between December 4, 1999 and December 4, 2009 are also deemed to be professionally qualified.

National license for commercial road haulage: 120,00 - 700,00 EUR

Community license: EUR 120.00 - 700.00

Further costs are incurred for information from the registers and for the preparation of other certificates.

You must apply for the national road haulage permit or the Community license (EU license) from the transport authority responsible for your place of business.

You can obtain the application form from the competent transport authority. Online forms are also available, depending on what the authority offers.

Complete the application in full and submit it with the required documents.

The competent transport authority will give the following institutions the opportunity to comment:

• the Federal Office for Goods Transport,
• the Chamber of Industry and Commerce
• the relevant trade union and
• the transport industry association.

After the deadline for comments has expired, the competent transport authority will decide on your application. You will receive a decision.

Processing can take up to 3 months from the time at which the responsible office receives all the necessary documents.

Road haulage for the company's own purposes does not require a permit if the following conditions are met:

• the transported goods must be owned by the company or sold, purchased, leased, rented, manufactured, produced, extracted, processed or repaired by the company.
• the purpose of the transportation must be to deliver the goods to the company, to dispatch them from the company, to transport them within the company or for the company's own use outside the company.
• the motor vehicles used for the transportation must always be driven by the company's own staff.
• The transportation may only be an ancillary activity within the scope of the company's overall activity.

If road haulage for the company's own purposes does not require a permit, the company operating road haulage is obliged to register its business with the Federal Office for Goods Transport before the first transport operation begins.

The Federal Office for Goods Transport is responsible for issuing the bilateral permit or a so-called CEMT permit for cross-border commercial road haulage and removal traffic in the community of CEMT member states (over 30 states in Europe).

• Permit for commercial road haulage Creation
• A permit is required for the transport of goods with motor vehicles > 3.5 tons
• Area of use of the vehicles in Germany: national permit
• Area of operation of the vehicles in the European Union, the European Economic Area (EEA)* and Switzerland: Community license (EU license)
• Reliability, professional suitability and financial capacity must be proven
• Proof of reliability, professional suitability and financial capacity, among other things
• Responsible: the transport authority responsible for the place of business

State Office for Mobility Rhineland-Palatinate (LBM RP).

E-mail: lbm@lbm.rlp.de