Apply for a collective licence for commercial road haulage
Do you intend to transport goods in Germany by motor vehicle, either as part of a business or for remuneration?
And do you use vehicles with a maximum authorised mass, including trailers, of more than 3.5 tonnes?
In that case, you will need a Community licence, which is issued by the local transport authority with jurisdiction over your place of business. Until February 2026, a road haulage licence was required for domestic freight transport within Germany. For cross-border goods transport, a Community licence was required. Since 27 February 2026, only the Community licence has been valid for both domestic and cross-border transport.
Cross-border road haulage
For cross-border road haulage, a Community licence is required for motor vehicles with a maximum authorised mass exceeding 2.5 tonnes. For purely domestic freight transport within Germany, the obligation to apply for a Community licence applies, but only for vehicles with a maximum authorised mass of more than 3.5 tonnes. Furthermore, it entitles the holder to carry out domestic transport in other EU or EEA states (cabotage).
A CEMT authorisation may also be required for the transport. This authorisation permits you to carry goods in cross-border commercial road haulage between 43 CEMT member states; the points of loading and unloading must be located in two of the European states party to the agreement. These include the EU and EEA states, as well as a number of Eastern and South-Eastern European countries. The Federal Office for Freight Transport is responsible for CEMT authorisations.
Transport to and from third countries (non-EU or non-EEA countries)
For transport operations to third countries that do not belong to the EU or the EEA, you will need a Community licence for the section of the journey within Germany. For the sections of the journey in third countries, you can obtain ‘bilateral authorisations’. The Federal Office for Logistics and Mobility is responsible for this.
Please note: If you are driving into or through Switzerland as part of commercial road haulage, you will need a valid Community licence.
Note: Own-account transport is not classified as commercial road haulage. Own-account transport refers to the carriage of goods for your own purposes. The transport or delivery of goods that you yourself consume, manufacture or process must be merely an ancillary activity.
You do not require a Community licence for own-account transport, but you must register this with the Federal Office for Logistics and Mobility.
Responsible authority
- for an urban district: the city council
- for a rural district: the district administration
Contact
Details
Prerequisite
As an entrepreneur with a registered office in Germany, you will be granted the Community licence provided the following conditions are met:
- You and the person appointed as transport manager must be of good repute. Both the company and the transport manager must demonstrate their good repute to the licensing authority.
- Your company’s financial viability must be guaranteed. The company requires equity capital plus reserves. The amount of capital is calculated based on the number of vehicles intended for use. For the first vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of more than 3.5 tonnes, the company requires equity capital of EUR 9,000; for each additional vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of more than 3.5 tonnes, EUR 5,000. This also applies when using hire vehicles. If, in cross-border freight transport, only vehicles with a maximum authorised mass of more than 2.5 tonnes up to 3.5 tonnes are used, proof of EUR 1,800 must be provided for the first vehicle. For each additional motor vehicle used with a maximum authorised mass of more than 2.5 tonnes up to 3.5 tonnes, proof of EUR 900.00 must be provided.
- You, or the person appointed as transport manager, must be professionally qualified.
You are deemed to be professionally qualified if you have passed a specialist examination at the Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK)
All final examinations previously recognised as equivalent shall continue to be regarded as equivalent if they were commenced or completed before 4 December 2011.
Note: Further information on this option is available from your local IHK.
You are also professionally qualified if you have worked in a road haulage company:- for at least ten years,
- continuously between 4 December 1999 and 4 December 2009,
- in a managerial role.
The Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK) responsible for you will check whether these requirements are met.
If you wish to operate a road haulage company that uses only motor vehicles weighing between 2.5 and a maximum of 3.5 tonnes in cross-border transport, you are also professionally qualified if you meet the following requirements:
- You have worked for ten years in a road haulage company;
- for ten consecutive years prior to 20 August 2020; and
- you have managed the company.
The district administration or municipal authority in which your company is based is responsible for verifying that these requirements are met.
Procedure
You must apply for the Community licence from the competent authority. The application for a Community licence must comply in substance with Annex 1 of the General Administrative Regulation on Road Haulage Law (GüKVwV).
The competent authority shall give the following bodies the opportunity to submit comments:
- the Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK),
- the relevant transport industry associations.
The competent authority will make the final decision on the application.
You must submit the application to the licensing authority in your place of residence in writing or, where this option is offered by the competent authority, as an online application.
Deadlines
The time limit for the competent authority to process an application for authorisation shall be as short as possible and shall not exceed three months from the date on which the competent authority has received all the documents necessary for the examination of the application. The competent authority may extend this time limit by a further month in duly justified cases.
Required documents
- As proof of good character: usually an extract from the
- Federal Central Register (certificate of good conduct)
- Driver Suitability Register (formerly: Central Traffic Register)
- Central Trade Register
- To prove financial standing: Annex 2 and, where necessary, Annex 3 of the General Administrative Regulation on Road Haulage Law (GüKVwV)
The competent authority may require further documents. You can obtain further information from the authority responsible for your place of business.
Tip: Apply for your certificates of good conduct and extracts from the Central Trade Register as early as possible, specifying the relevant authority when doing so. It usually takes some time to receive these documents. You can submit the remaining supporting documents at a later date. Here too, it may take some time before you receive them. All supporting documents must be submitted before a final decision can be made.
Costs
Community licence: From EUR 120.00 to EUR 700.00
Please note: Additional costs will be incurred for information from the registers and for the preparation of other supporting documents. This also applies to certified copies of the collective licence, which you must carry in the vehicles.
Processing time
Within three months of the date on which the competent authority has received all the necessary documents.
The competent authority may extend this period by one month in duly justified cases.
Miscellaneous
Period of validity
The Community licence may be issued for a period of up to ten years.
Authorisations for domestic commercial road haulage that have already been granted remain valid until their expiry date. Authorisations of indefinite duration remain valid until 27 February 2036 at the latest.
Legal basis
Allgemeine Verwaltungsvorschrift zum Güterverkehrsrecht (GüKVwV)
Güterkraftverkehrsgesetz (GüKG):
- § 3 Gewerblicher Güterkraftverkehr durch Unternehmer mit Sitz im Inland
- § 5 Gewerblicher Güterkraftverkehr durch Unternehmer ohne Sitz im Inland
Berufszugangsverordnung für den Güterkraftverkehr (GBZugV):
- § 10 Erlaubnisverfahren
Verordnung (EG) Nummer 1071/2009 des Europäischen Parlaments und des Rates vom 21. Oktober 2009 zur Festlegung gemeinsamer Regeln für die Zulassung zum Beruf des Kraftverkehrsunternehmers und zur Aufhebung der Richtlinie 96/26/EG des Rates
Verordnung (EG) Nummer 1072/2009 des Europäischen Parlaments und des Rates vom 21. Oktober 2009 über gemeinsame Regeln für den Zugang zum Markt des grenzüberschreitenden Güterkraftverkehrs
Verordnung über den grenzüberschreitenden Güterkraftverkehr und den Kabotageverkehr (GüKGrKabotageV)
Release note
Machine generated, based on the German release by: Verkehrsministerium Baden-Württemberg, 05.06.2026