INTERNATIONAL TRANSPORTATION OF GOODS BY ROAD

Every proprietor or commercial enterprise in Bulgaria which wishes to engage commercially in the international transportation of goods by motor vehicles of Bulgarian registration needs to obtain the so called Community License for the International Carriage of Goods by Road valid in the EU member states This license is issued by the Minister of Transport, IT and Communications, or by an official with delegated powers. No license is required for international carriage by motor vehicles with a loading capacity of up to 3.5 t or a permissible maximum mass of up to 6 t and for the transportation of goods for one’s own account. A Community License may be granted only to a carrier who meets the requirements for trustworthiness (good reputation), professional competence and financial soundness. Firstly, the carrier must appoint a company officer in charge of the transport activity. That officer may be appointed Managing Director of the company or he/she may hold the position of Head of Transport under an employment contract. The criteria for trustworthiness are met when the carrier’s head of transport has not been convicted of an indictable offence under the Penal Code or has not been stripped of his right to perform transport activities. The requirements for professional competence are considered to have been met when the carrier’s head of transport has the necessary knowledge and skills acquired through training courses or practical experience, has passed the necessary qualification examinations, and has finished at least a secondary school. Those who have passed the exams get a termless certificate of professional competence. The requirements for professional competence are also met, if the Head of Transport does possess a certificate of professional competence issued by a competent organ of an EU member state. A person holding the required certificate may be put in charge of the transport activity of no more than two carriers. Financially sound is a person who has enough resources to provide for the launching and normal performance of the activity of the transport company. In this connection the statutory minimum company capital, which depends on the number of the registered motor vehicles must have been paid in or a bank guarantee for the same amount must have been provided. The capital, respectively the bank guarantee, is the equivalent in Bulgarian currency of 9,000 euros per motor vehicle, of 14,000 euros for two motor vehicles, and so on for every next motor vehicle by 5,000 euros. The sound financial standing must be proved every two years. Upon cumulative satisfaction of the above requirements there is issued a Community License for international transportation of goods and certified copies of the license the number of which is determined by the number of motor vehicles for which the applicant has provided evidence for financial stability. The license validity is 5 years. The license and the certified copies are personal and cannot be conceded. The Community License may be renewed for another five years provided the licensed carrier has filed an application prior to expiry of the license validity and is still eligible for the license.