Setting up a road haulage company in Estonia from outside the EU
You want an Estonian licence to haul goods across Europe, and your company or your home is outside the EU. Estonia expects a company in its commercial register, an address in Estonia where the core business documents are kept and a transport manager who lives in the EU. The licence itself comes from a carriers' association, the ERAA, within 30 calendar days for EUR 254.20.
What an Estonian haulage company needs
Seven obligations, who carries them and when they apply.
| Obligation | Rule | Who | When or how long | Official source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial register | Entry in the Estonian commercial register (äriregister) | The applicant | Before the licence application | Transport Administration |
| Haulage licence | Paid transport with vehicles over 3,500 kg, or over 2,500 kg for international work; fee EUR 254.20 (EUR 205 plus VAT) | The carrier, with the ERAA | Decision within 30 calendar days, valid 10 years | ERAA |
| Document address | An address in Estonia where the article 5(a) documents are kept | The carrier | In the application, changes reported within 30 days | ERAA |
| Transport manager | A natural person resident in the EU who effectively directs the transport activity, with proof of competence | Appointed by the carrier | Named in the application | Regulation 1071/2009, art. 4 |
| Financial standing | EUR 9,000 for the first vehicle, EUR 5,000 for each additional vehicle over 3.5 t | The carrier | At the application | Regulation 1071/2009, art. 7 |
| Road user charge | Time-based charge (teekasutustasu) for every lorry over 3.5 t | The operator of each lorry | Before using the public road network | Transport Administration |
| Posted drivers in Estonia | At least the Estonian minimum wage: EUR 886 a month on 1 January 2026, EUR 946 on 1 July 2026 | Carriers doing cabotage or cross-trade in Estonia | IMI declaration at the latest when the posting starts | Eurostat |
Estonia applies the EU haulage regulations directly. Regulation 1071/2009 sets four conditions for access to the profession: an effective and stable establishment in a member state, good repute, appropriate financial standing and professional competence (Regulation 1071/2009, art. 3). Regulation 1072/2009 governs the Community licence and cabotage, and Directive 2020/1057 the posting of drivers. Our guide to road haulage rules across Europe sets out that EU base and compares the countries. The rest of this page covers what Estonia adds, as in force on 6 November 2026.
The ERAA licence for goods transport
A carriers' association processes the file. The Transport Administration supervises the sector.
In Estonia, paid goods transport with a vehicle over 3,500 kg needs a licence. Since 21 May 2022, vehicles over 2,500 kg need one as well when they carry goods internationally. The licence is valid for 10 years. The rule comes from the Road Transport Act, the Autoveoseadus or AutoS (ERAA, Community licence for goods transport).
The file goes to the ERAA (Eesti Rahvusvaheliste Autovedajate Assotsiatsioon), the Estonian association of international road carriers, which processes and issues the EU licences. The applicant must already be entered in the Estonian commercial register, the äriregister. The Transport Administration (Transpordiamet) sets this out on its road transport supervision page, which also mentions an exemption for the domestic paid transport covered by § 6(2) of the AutoS (Transport Administration, road transport supervision). We could not read the Act itself, so check with the ERAA whether your work falls under that exemption before you rely on it.
Lorries
Paid goods transport over 3,500 kg needs the licence, domestic work included unless the § 6(2) exemption applies. Each of these lorries also pays the road user charge (ERAA, Transport Administration).
Vans and light lorries
Since 21 May 2022, vehicles over 2,500 kg need the licence for international transport. A company that uses only vehicles between 2.5 and 3.5 t shows a lower financial standing under EU rules: EUR 1,800 for the first vehicle and EUR 900 for each additional one (Regulation 1071/2009, art. 7).
Fee, time limit and validity
The ERAA charges EUR 254.20, which is EUR 205 plus VAT. It decides within 30 calendar days at most, and silence does not count as approval: without a decision there is no licence, and no paid load can run under it. Once granted, the licence runs for 10 years (ERAA). Under EU law it can be renewed (Regulation 1072/2009, art. 4).
Company, address and capital in Estonia
What the ERAA file must show before a licence is issued.
The licence goes to an applicant entered in the Estonian commercial register (Transport Administration). EU law adds that the company must have an effective and stable establishment in the state that issues the licence. Its vehicles must be registered in Estonia, and the business must actually be run from its premises there (Regulation 1071/2009, art. 5).
The Estonian document address
The ERAA file must give an address in Estonia where the company keeps the documents listed in article 5(a) of Regulation 1071/2009. These are its core business records: accounting, personnel management, driving time and cabotage documents. The file also contains a written confirmation required by article 5(1)(f) of the same regulation, plus the details and proof of competence of the transport manager. Any change to this information must be reported within 30 days (ERAA).
Financial standing
The EU amounts apply in Estonia. The company needs capital and reserves of at least EUR 9,000 for the first vehicle and EUR 5,000 for each additional vehicle over 3.5 t, or EUR 900 for each additional vehicle between 2.5 and 3.5 t. A bank guarantee is accepted, and a new company without annual accounts may prove its standing by other means (Regulation 1071/2009, art. 7). Ask the ERAA which proof it expects from a newly registered company before you put up the capital.
Transport manager and drivers
The rules that most often stop a founder who lives outside the EU.
Estonia calls the transport manager the veokorraldusjuht. The ERAA file names this person and includes proof of their competence (ERAA). Under EU law, the transport manager is a natural person resident in the EU who effectively directs the transport activity of the company (Regulation 1071/2009, art. 4).
A founder who lives outside the EU cannot be the transport manager
The residence condition applies to the person, not to the company. If you live outside the EU, the Estonian file needs someone else in that role, either inside the company or as an external manager under contract. An external manager may work for at most 4 companies and 50 vehicles, and a member state may set lower caps (Regulation 1071/2009, art. 4). Find this person before you register the company.
Proof for the veokorraldusjuht
The file must include proof of the manager's competence (ERAA). The conditions of the Estonian examination are not set out in the official pages we could read. If your manager qualified in another country, ask the ERAA how that certificate is treated.
Drivers from outside the EU
A driver who is a national of a non-EU country needs a driver attestation issued by the state where the carrier is established, so by Estonia for an Estonian carrier (Regulation 1072/2009, art. 5). Plan one for each non-EU driver you hire.
Road charge, cabotage and posted drivers
What applies once the lorries run, in Estonia and from it.
The Estonian road user charge
Since 1 January 2018, every lorry over 3.5 t (vehicle categories N2 and N3) must pay a time-based road user charge, the teekasutustasu, before it uses the Estonian public road network. The legal basis is the Traffic Act (Liiklusseadus). As of 15 December 2025, there was no EETS provider in Estonia, EETS being the European Electronic Toll Service (Transport Administration, road user charge). We have not read the current rates in an official source, so check them on that page before the first trip.
Cabotage and cross-trade abroad
An Estonian carrier may make up to 3 cabotage operations in another member state after an international delivery there, with the last unloading within 7 days. It then waits 4 days before cabotage in that state with the same vehicle (Regulation 1072/2009, art. 8). Cabotage, and transport between two countries other than Estonia, count as posting. Declare each driver through the IMI public interface at the latest when the posting starts, and supply the documents on request within 8 weeks (Directive 2020/1057, art. 1).
Carriers from other states working in Estonia
The same cabotage limits apply to a carrier licensed elsewhere, and Estonian rules apply while it does cabotage in Estonia. A driver posted to Estonia is owed at least the Estonian minimum wage, which Eurostat lists at EUR 886 a month gross on 1 January 2026 and EUR 946 on 1 July 2026 (Eurostat). Bilateral trips to or from Estonia are not posting.
Lorries no longer have to return to their operating centre every 8 weeks, but drivers still return every 3 or 4 weeks and may not take their regular weekly rest in the cab (Court of Justice, 4 October 2024).
From the first decision to the first paid load
In the order a newcomer meets them. Only official deadlines are shown.
Find an EU-resident transport manager
The person must live in the EU and hold proof of competence. Without their details, the ERAA file is incomplete.
Register the company in Estonia
Entry in the commercial register (äriregister) comes first. Arrange at the same time the Estonian address where the article 5(a) documents will be kept.
Put the financial standing in place
Capital and reserves or a bank guarantee, at the EU amounts shown in the table above.
Apply to the ERAA
The fee is EUR 254.20. No answer within the period does not mean approval, so follow up before you accept paid loads.
Pay the road user charge
Required for every lorry over 3.5 t since 1 January 2018. Check the current rate on the Transport Administration page.
Declare posted drivers in IMI
For cabotage and cross-trade. Keep the documents ready, because they must be supplied on request within 8 weeks.
Keep the licence current
Report changes to the file within 30 days. The licence runs for 10 years and can then be renewed.
What the official sources do not settle
The Estonian legislation site could not be read for this guide, so the text of the AutoS was not checked, and with it the exact scope of the § 6(2) domestic exemption. The official pages we read also leave out the current rates of the road user charge, the conditions of the Estonian examination for a veokorraldusjuht, the form of proof of financial standing the ERAA accepts from a new company, and the exact date the 2026 minimum wage increase took effect. Confirm each point with the ERAA, the Transport Administration or a licensed adviser in Estonia before you rely on it.
What Balt Partners coordinates
One contact in Riga for the Estonian set-up, with a licensed adviser in Estonia for the filings.
Obligation map and calendar
Licence file, transport manager, financial standing, road user charge and posting declarations, with every deadline on one calendar.
ERAA licence file
We bring in a licensed adviser in Estonia, who handles the filing with the ERAA. We prepare the documents with you and track the 30-day period from Riga.
Company and address in Estonia
A licensed local adviser handles the commercial register entry and the address where the article 5(a) documents are kept. We line up the timing with the licence file.
A Latvian company if it fits better
If Riga suits your operation better, we form a Latvian SIA with its bank account and accounting set-up, as explained in our page on EU company formation for non-residents. Compare the Latvian haulage licence procedure first.
Questions about a haulage company in Estonia
Only through an applicant entered in the Estonian commercial register, with an address in Estonia where its core business documents are kept. It must also meet the EU conditions of establishment, good repute, financial standing and professional competence, and appoint a transport manager who lives in the EU.
The ERAA, the Estonian association of international road carriers, processes and issues the EU licences for goods transport. The Transport Administration (Transpordiamet) supervises road transport.
The ERAA charges EUR 254.20, which is EUR 205 plus VAT. It decides within 30 calendar days at most, and silence does not count as approval. The licence is valid for 10 years.
For paid transport, the licence is required for vehicles over 3,500 kg. Since 21 May 2022, vehicles over 2,500 kg also need it for international transport.
No. EU rules require the transport manager to be a natural person resident in the EU who effectively directs the transport activity. You can appoint an external manager instead, who may manage at most 4 companies and 50 vehicles.
Yes. Since 1 January 2018, every lorry over 3.5 t must pay a time-based road user charge before using the public road network. We have not found the current rates in an official source, so check them with the Transport Administration.
Eurostat lists the Estonian minimum wage at EUR 886 a month gross on 1 January 2026 and EUR 946 on 1 July 2026. Cabotage and cross-trade in Estonia count as posting, while bilateral transport does not.