What is a Community transport licence?
In order to carry out the international carriage of goods by road for hire or reward, it is necessary to hold a Community licence and an extract of the Community licence for each vehicle. This licence shall be granted to an undertaking which is authorised to engage in the occupation of road transport operator.
The Community licence is an administrative decision issued by the General Inspector of Road Transport (GITD), which authorises the undertaking and carrying out of economic activities in the field of commercial road transport. In addition, it is not issued per transport company or driver, but per vehicle.
The aforementioned licence authorises the commercial driving of commercial vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes.
A separate international licence is required for international transport by vehicles over 3.5 t, which is not the same as a Community licence.
On the other hand, in the case of national transport by vehicles with a gross weight of more than 3.5 t, it is mandatory to hold a licence to engage in the occupation of road transport operator.
Authorisation to engage in the occupation of road transport operator - what is it?
A permit to pursue the occupation of road transport operator is an administrative decision that authorises an entrepreneur to carry out road transport in the territory of Poland. Entrepreneurs who intend to conduct business activity based on paid carriage of goods in vehicles of over 3.5 tons or carriage of passengers (vehicles designed to carry more than 9 persons including the driver) are required to hold a permit to pursue the occupation of road transport operator. In order to obtain this permit, it is necessary to fulfil a number of conditions and to include the relevant documents in the application for the permit.
Who is a road transport operator? It is an entrepreneur carrying out road transport activities. The commencement and performance of road transport is subject to an authorisation to engage in the occupation of road transport operator.
Who does not need a transport licence?
Not every van is covered by the requirement for a transport licence. Exempt from this obligation are hauliers who are engaged in:
- international transport of groups of people;
- international transport of goods for own use (not for profit);
- national carriage of goods.
How is the carriage of passengers in domestic transport regulated?
For passenger transport in Poland, you must obtain a licence to transport people by minibus. Bus is the common name for a vehicle designed to transport more than 7 and no more than 9 persons including the driver. The full name of this licence is: licence to perform national road transport of passengers by means of a motor vehicle designed for the carriage of more than 7 and no more than 9 persons including the driver. It is worth emphasising that this licence entitles the holder to carry out carriage exclusively within the territory of Poland.
A Community licence for the international carriage of passengers by bus and coach for hire or reward will be required to transport people internationally. It will be recalled here that the Community transport licence concerns the international carriage of stuffand not individuals.
Where to apply for a licence?
CHIEF INSPECTORATE OF ROAD TRANSPORT
International Transport Office
- Jerozolimskie 94, 00-807 Warsaw
How do I obtain a Community transport licence?
The first step will be to submit an application for a Community Licence, in which you must state for which period you intend to obtain a licence (the maximum period is 10 years), the number of entries requested and the number of vehicles to be reported. This application is labelled "LR1 application" - https://www.gov.pl/web/gitd/wniosek-lr1. The application must be accompanied by:
- authorisation to engage in the occupation of road transport operator or a licence for the national transport of goods by road;
- a certificate issued by the authority which authorised the pursuit of the occupation of road transport operator of the number of vehicles for which the requirement as to financial standing has been documented - this document is related to the fulfilment of the condition as to the requirement as to financial standing which is laid down in Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 1071/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009;
- information from the National Criminal Register - in the case of granting permission to pursue the occupation of road transport operator by the GITD
According to Article 7a (2) of the Road Transport Act, the application for a Community licence shall include:
- the trader's name, address and registered office specified in the Register of Entrepreneurs in the National Court Register (KRS) or, in the case of entrepreneurs who are natural persons, the address of the permanent place of business activity specified in the Central Register and Information on Business Activity (CEIDG);
- alert information to CEIDG or the number in the Register of Entrepreneurs in the National Court Register, if required;
- tax identification number (NIP);
- determination of the type of road transport;
- determination of the type and number of motor vehicleswhich the undertaking will use to carry out road transport;
- the name, residential address and number of the certificate of professional competence of the transport manager (the transport manager is the natural person designated by the undertaking engaged in the occupation of road transport operator);
- determination of the number of discharges from the authorisation to pursue the occupation of road transport operator or from the Community licence;
- in the case of a Community licence timingfor which it is to be granted.
The Chief Road Transport Inspector, after verification of the documents, issues a Community licence for the international carriage of goods for hire or reward and an extract from the Community licence for each vehicle.
You will generally wait no longer than a month for the GITD's decision, the time limit may possibly extend to 2 months. If the GITD refuses to issue licences or extracts, you have the right to request a review - the request must be submitted to the GITD within 14 days of receiving the refusal.
The cost of a transport licence depends on the period for which it is issued. For a period of up to 5 years, the amount is PLN 4,000 and PLN 440 for each extract, and for a period from 5 to 10 years PLN 8,000 and PLN 880 for each extract. The fee should be paid to the bank account number found on the website of the Main Road Transport Inspectorate. In the title of the transfer, it is necessary to indicate your NIP number.
Obligations of the licensed undertaking
The road haulier must notify, in writing or electronically, the authority which granted the authorisation to pursue the occupation of road haulier or the Community licence of any changes in data no later than 28 days after they arise.
If road transport activities are carried out by a company in the form of a civil partnership, all its partners are required to have the appropriate authorisations (i.e. licences or permits) to carry out such activities.
Summary
A number of formal requirements must be met in order to obtain a Community transport licence. When submitting an application, particular care must be taken to note the elements that must necessarily be in the document in order for it to meet the legal requirements and be accepted for processing.
The interested party has the right to file a request for reconsideration if, among other things, the application is rejected. The best step before submitting such a form is to consult a lawyer to streamline the licence application process and ensure that the formal requirements are met.
In addition to providing services to transport companies, our law firm supports entrepreneurs in applying for a Community transport licence and driver's licenses - also for third-country nationals - you are welcome to contact us by phone or e-mail!
