Setting up a road haulage company in Europe from outside the EU
You run or plan a trucking business from the US, the UK, the Gulf, Turkey or India and want to carry goods for clients in Europe. The EU sets one licensing regime, but each country picks its own authority, fees, road charges and minimum wage. This guide compares 15 countries, with a link to the official source for each rule.
Founders and carriers who want to haul goods in Europe
Goods carried for hire or reward with trucks, and with vans over 2.5 t on international trips.
Entrepreneurs starting a carrier in the EU
Founders in the US, the Gulf, Turkey or India who want an EU company with its own licence and trucks registered in Europe.
Transport groups opening a European subsidiary
Haulage and logistics groups based outside the EU that want a European subsidiary holding its own licence.
UK hauliers working in the EU
UK operator licence holders whose EU work is capped by the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
Carriers already licensed in an EU country
Carriers, including those owned from outside the EU, that run cabotage or cross-trade in other countries.
What each of the 15 countries adds to the EU rules
Official sources read on 6 November 2026.
| Country | What differs there | Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Germany | Every company based in Germany needs a Community licence from its Land authority, valid up to 10 years (§ 3 GüKG), trucks over 3.5 t pay the LKW-Maut on motorways and federal roads (§ 1 BFStrMG) and the minimum wage is €13.90 an hour (MiLoV5). | Germany guide |
| France | The DREAL registers the company and sends the licence, vehicles of 3.5 t or less need €1,800, then €900 each, and the official guidance gives no processing time (service-public.gouv.fr). | On request |
| Netherlands | NIWO charges €255 for a new Eurovergunning and wants an opening balance sheet with a compilation statement from an NBA, NOAB or RB accountant (NIWO), and trucks over 3,500 kg pay a kilometre charge since 1 July 2026 (Rijksoverheid). | On request |
| Spain | The EU rules apply, plus a company entered in the Registro Mercantil with transport in its corporate purpose (ROTT art. 36) and a minimum wage of €1,221 a month paid 14 times (RD 126/2026). | On request |
| Italy | The EU rules apply with no separate national authorisation since 2022, plus registration in the Albo degli autotrasportatori and the REN through the Motorizzazione civile (Provincia di Trento). | On request |
| United Kingdom (outside the EU) | An operator licence from the Traffic Commissioners, with an off-road operating centre and an application advertised in a local newspaper and filed at least 9 weeks ahead (GOV.UK), and £8,000 for the first HGV, then £4,500 each (financial evidence). | On request |
| Poland | The GITD charges PLN 1,000 for the permit and PLN 4,000 for a licence of up to 5 years plus PLN 440 per copy, converts the capital at 4.2583 zł per euro and asks for the original annex OB on the operating base (GITD). | Poland guide |
| Ireland | The EU rules apply, filed with the Road Transport Operator Licensing Unit of the Department of Transport, with premises that include parking spaces (gov.ie). | On request |
| Belgium | The capital is lodged as a guarantee of €9,000, then €5,000 per motor vehicle, each motor vehicle carries a licence copy, and Benelux carriers face no cabotage limits inside the Benelux (SPF Mobilité). | On request |
| Sweden | The company needs F-skatt approval and a VAT number, premises with a real postal address (no PO box), finances certified by a FAR or SRF auditor or accountant, and no public debts at the Kronofogden (Transportstyrelsen). | On request |
| Austria | A Konzession needs Austrian or EU nationality or an exemption under § 5 (8) GütbefG, a gewerberechtlicher Geschäftsführer who represents the company or works there at least 20 hours a week, and off-road truck parking (Land Tirol). | On request |
| Portugal | An IMT licence is needed from 2,500 kg even for domestic transport, lasts at most 5 years and costs €350 to apply for (IMT). | On request |
| Latvia | The ATD licence covers vehicles over 2.5 t even for domestic transport, costs a state fee of €22.00, is issued within 30 days of paying the invoice and accepts share capital as financial proof if you apply within 3 months of registering the company (ATD). | Latvia guide |
| Lithuania | Official sources could not be read yet: the licensing authority's site blocked our access (LTSA), so every Lithuanian rule we have seen is unconfirmed. | On request |
| Estonia | The ERAA, a professional association, issues EU licences within 30 calendar days for €254.20 and wants an address in Estonia where the documents are kept (ERAA). | Estonia guide |
Countries without a guide are covered on a call for now.
What every EU country asks of a new carrier
Four conditions, the same in the 14 EU countries of this guide.
A company that carries goods for others needs an effective and stable establishment in an EU member state, good repute, appropriate financial standing and professional competence (art. 3 of Regulation 1071/2009). Establishment means premises holding the core documents (accounts, personnel files, driving time and cabotage records), vehicles registered in that country, real activity run from those premises and a suitable operating centre (art. 5).
The transport manager is a natural person who resides in the EU and effectively runs the transport activity (art. 4). A founder living outside the EU cannot fill the role, so the company employs one or contracts an external manager, who may work for at most 4 companies with 50 vehicles in total. Each country may lower these caps.
Financial standing is at least €9,000 in capital and reserves for the first vehicle, plus €5,000 for each additional vehicle over 3.5 t or €900 for each additional vehicle of 2.5 to 3.5 t. A company that runs only vans of 2.5 to 3.5 t needs €1,800, then €900 per van. A bank guarantee is accepted, and a new company without annual accounts may prove it another way (art. 7).
The authority decides within 3 months of a complete file, extendable by 1 month (art. 11(3)). The Community licence, valid for up to 10 years and renewable, is required for international transport for hire or reward, including with vehicles over 2.5 t since 21 May 2022. A driver from a non-EU country also needs a driver attestation from the carrier's country (arts. 4 and 5 of Regulation 1072/2009).
What each country still decides
The authority and its language, fees, real processing times, the form of the financial proof, extra conditions on tax, premises or parking, road charges and the minimum wage: see the country table.
Cabotage, posting of drivers and the 2024 court ruling
For trucks that load and unload outside their home country.
After an incoming international carriage, a Community licence holder may make up to 3 cabotage operations in another EU country, with the last unloading within 7 days. The same vehicle then waits 4 days before any new cabotage in that country. The driver shows the CMR or e-CMR consignment note during the roadside check, and the host country's rules apply (arts. 8 and 9 of Regulation 1072/2009).
Bilateral transport to or from the country of establishment is not a posting. Cabotage and cross-trade between two other countries are. The carrier declares each posting through the public IMI interface at the latest when it starts and must provide documents within 8 weeks of a request, under rules in force since 2 February 2022 (art. 1 of Directive (EU) 2020/1057).
The 8-week vehicle return rule is gone
On 4 October 2024 the EU Court of Justice annulled the obligation to bring each vehicle back to the operating centre every 8 weeks. It upheld the ban on regular weekly rest in the cab, the driver's return every 3 or 4 weeks, the 4-day cabotage cooling-off period and the treatment of cabotage and cross-trade as posting (CJEU, cases C-541/20 to C-555/20). The Latvian ATD page still mentions the 8-week return.
Minimum wages and road charges stay national
What a posted driver must be paid, and what a truck pays to use the roads.
During a posting, the host country's minimum wage applies to the driver (Directives 96/71/EC and 2020/1057). Eurostat's gross monthly minimum wages on 1 July 2026 are €2,391 in Ireland, €2,343 in Germany, €2,338 in the Netherlands, €2,234 in Belgium, €1,867 in France, €1,425 in Spain, €1,153 in Lithuania, €1,119 in Poland, €1,073 in Portugal, €946 in Estonia and €780 in Latvia (Eurostat). The Polish figure moves with the zloty. Italy, Austria and Sweden have no statutory minimum wage: collective agreements apply there, and we have not read them (Eurostat).
LKW-Maut
Due on motorways and federal roads for vehicles over 3.5 t, with zero-emission trucks exempt until 30 June 2031 (§ 1 BFStrMG).
Vrachtwagenheffing
Charged per kilometre on Dutch and foreign trucks over 3,500 kg since 1 July 2026, by weight and CO2, with a temporary 22.3% cut from 1 September to 31 December 2026 (Rijksoverheid).
GO-Maut
From €0.0587 to €0.5724 per kilometre before 20% VAT for vehicles over 3.5 t on motorways and expressways, with a GO-Box on board (ASFINAG).
HGV levy
Paid before entry for each day a foreign truck of 12,000 kg or more uses an A road or motorway: £3.22 to £9.67 a day for a Euro 6 truck (GOV.UK).
Estonia charges every truck over 3.5 t a time-based fee before it uses the public roads (Transpordiamet). We have not yet read official rates for the German Maut in 2026, Poland's e-TOLL or road charges in Latvia and Lithuania. Belgium's kilometre charge and the regional truck charges planned in eastern France appear so far only in secondary sources: confirm them with the authority before you price a route.
Do you need an EU company?
To haul between and inside EU countries under a Community licence, yes.
When your home company is enough
A UK operator can work in the EU within the EU-UK agreement: at most 2 further operations within 7 days, or 1 if it is cabotage (§ 6 GüKG). This guide does not cover carriers licensed in other non-EU countries.
When you need an EU company
The Community licence, needed for transport for hire or reward between EU countries, cabotage and cross-trade, comes from the country where the carrier is established. That company needs real premises, trucks registered there, an EU-resident transport manager and the financial standing. A registered address alone is not enough.
For the company itself, see our pages on forming an EU company as a non-resident, on a Latvian subsidiary for a foreign group and on real substance in Latvia.
What Balt Partners coordinates
One contact in Riga for the European side of your haulage plans.
Obligation map for your routes
Licence, transport manager, capital, posting, road charges and wages for each country you serve, with the deadlines in one calendar.
A Latvian SIA set up for haulage
We form the SIA, open its bank account and set up its accounting, so the company can apply to the ATD within the 3 months in which share capital counts as financial proof.
The Latvian licence file
We list what the ATD asks for, from premises to transport manager and financial proof, and coordinate the application with you.
Licensed advisers in other countries
For a company in Poland, Germany, Estonia or elsewhere, a licensed local adviser handles the filing and we coordinate the work.
Detailed procedures: the ATD licence in Latvia, the ERAA licence in Estonia, the GITD procedure in Poland and haulage rules in Germany.
Questions from non-EU founders about haulage in Europe
No. The Community licence comes from the EU country where the carrier is established, and establishment in a member state is one of the four conditions. A founder from outside the EU needs a company in an EU country, with premises, trucks registered there, an EU-resident transport manager and the financial standing.
Yes. Regulation 1071/2009 requires a natural person residing in the EU who effectively manages the transport activity. A founder living abroad employs one or contracts an external manager, who may work for at most 4 companies with 50 vehicles in total.
At least €9,000 for the first vehicle and €5,000 for each additional vehicle over 3.5 t, or €900 for each additional vehicle of 2.5 to 3.5 t. A company running only vans needs €1,800, then €900 per van. A bank guarantee is accepted, and in Belgium the amount must be lodged as a guarantee. The UK asks £8,000 for the first HGV, then £4,500 each.
EU law allows 3 months from a complete file, plus 1 month. Latvia issues the licence within 30 days of payment of the invoice, Estonia decides within 30 calendar days and the Netherlands aims to reply 2 weeks after payment. We found no official processing time for Germany, France or Poland. In the UK, apply at least 9 weeks ahead.
Up to 3 after an incoming international carriage, with the last unloading within 7 days, then a 4-day pause for that vehicle in that country. The driver shows the CMR or e-CMR notes at a roadside check, and cabotage counts as a posting, declared through IMI.
Not on bilateral trips to or from the carrier's country of establishment. Cabotage and cross-trade between two other countries are postings: the carrier declares them through the public IMI interface at the latest when they start, applies the host country's minimum wage and provides documents within 8 weeks of a request.