International Haulage Permits

30 October 2020

It is just over nine weeks until the end of the Brexit transition period on 31 December 2020. If there is no Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in place, or some other form of agreement governing transport operator licensing, then Community Licences issued by the UK may no longer be recognised. Instead, international operators may need European Conference of Ministers of Transport – referred to as ECMT – permits in order to carry goods to EU Member States.

Applications for these permits for 2021 will be accepted between 2 November 2020 and 20 November 2020.   All international operators hoping to carry goods to the EU in 2021 should apply for these ECMT permits in case the problem of cross-border licensing recognition is not resolved. Fortunately, according to the GOV.UK website, it does not appear to be the case that the permits are allocated on a “first come, first served” basis; however, late applications will not be accepted.

Operators hoping to apply for 2021 permits will need to be able to provide the following information:

• Which countries you will need to transport goods to, or through, in 2021.
• The number of international trips you made in 2019 (an outward and return trip counts as one trip).
• The percentage of international trips you made in 2019.
• If your journeys include transit (passing through one or several EU countries, without collecting or delivering goods in the EU, before reaching a non-EU destination such as Switzerland).
• If your journeys include cross-trade (moving goods between 2 ECMT Member States).
• The emissions class of the vehicle you will be using the permits in (most permits are for Euro VI vehicles only, but a small number will be available for Euro V vehicles).
• Which sector you mainly transports goods.

A £10.00 application fee is payable for each permit. A further fee – for the actual permit – is then payable: (1) £10.00 per permit for short-term permits for use in 2020; or, (2) £123.00 per permit for an annual ECMT permit for use in 2021.

Further details on ECMT international road haulage permits can be found here.

If you require legal advice regarding Brexit and/or ECMT permits, please contact our Regulatory Team at regulatory@backhouses.co.uk or on 01254 828300.