Establishing a Slovak LLC for freight transport over 3.5 tons – guide

Establishing a Slovak company for freight transport over 3.5 tons is a moderately complex process. In order to legally operate freight transport in Slovakia in this category, you will need a license to operate as a carrier of goods by road over 3.5 tons (hereinafter referred to as the “license for freight transport over 3.5 tons“) issued in Slovakia.

In this article, we will look at the steps you can take to set up your company for freight transport in Slovakia and obtain the necessary license.

 

Step 1. Establishing a Slovak limited liability company (s.r.o.)

To apply for a license for freight transport over 3.5 tons in Slovakia, you must have an existing Slovak company that is duly registered in the Slovak Commercial Register. At this stage, you can either set up a limited liability company (s.r.o.) from scratch, which takes on average 30 days, or purchase an already established Slovak ready-made s.r.o. with VAT registration, in whose name you can start business within a single day.

MONEY-SAVING TIP: At this stage, we recommend that you consider the amount of share capital for the newly established Slovak company. This is because, when applying for a license for freight transport over 3.5 tons, you will need to demonstrate so-called financial standing. In the case of a newly established company that has existed for less than 15 months, financial standing is proven by the amount of the company’s share capital. For the first vehicle, financial standing must be demonstrated in the amount of €9,000, and for each additional vehicle €5,000. The share capital must therefore be at least equal to the required financial standing for the relevant number of vehicles. If you set this amount at the time of incorporation, you will avoid having to increase the share capital later when applying for the license, thereby saving on increased legal service costs.

 

Step 2. Application for a license for freight transport over 3.5 tons. Conditions for obtaining a license in Slovakia

To apply for a license to operate freight transport over 3.5 tons in Slovakia, you must meet the following conditions:

 

(A) Financial standing of the carrier

As described in the previous step, a condition for the issuance of the license is to demonstrate a certain level of financial standing of the company. For a new company (less than 15 months old), financial standing is demonstrated by the amount of its share capital. The amount of financial standing, and thus the share capital, directly determines the number of vehicles the company will use for freight transport over 3.5 tons. For the first vehicle, €9,000 is required; for each additional vehicle, €5,000.

Financial standing can also be alternatively demonstrated by:

• Proof of liability insurance. The insurance policy must be accompanied by proof of payment.
• A bank guarantee issued by the carrier’s bank.

 

(B) Age and good repute

Another condition for operating as a carrier of goods by road is a minimum age of 21 years. For a legal entity, all managing directors and the transport manager must meet this requirement. An equally important condition is the good repute of the managing directors and the transport manager, demonstrated by a criminal record extract from their country of residence. A person is not considered to be of good repute if:

• they have been lawfully convicted of an intentional criminal offence under special legislation and the sentence has not been expunged, and
• in connection with managing a company or performing the role of transport manager, they have been lawfully sanctioned for a serious administrative offence under special legislation, in categories and types of breaches determined by the European Commission. Loss of good repute is recorded in the register of operators.

 

(C) Actual and stable establishment

An actual and stable establishment is a place where the LLC keeps its main business records, in particular all accounting records, records of employee management, records of driving times and rest periods, and all other documents to which the competent authority must have access in order to verify compliance with the conditions laid down in the regulation. This is therefore the company’s registered office. The company must have such an office.

 

(D) Technical base of the transport company

Another condition for obtaining a freight transport license is proof of a technical base that allows the parking and maintenance of the transport company’s freight vehicles. The base must be located in Slovakia. In practice, the District Office’s transport department, which issues the license, requires the company to prove the technical base with a lease agreement or land register extract for a plot of at least 60 m² per freight vehicle. The plot must be classified as a parking area or at least as built-up areas and courtyards.

 

(E) Appointment of a transport manager with the required professional competence

A condition for obtaining a license for freight transport over 3.5 tons is the appointment of a transport manager. The transport manager is a natural person who actually and continuously manages the company’s transport activities. The transport manager must:

• be of good repute,
• actually and continuously manage the company’s transport activities,
• be genuinely linked to the company, for example as an employee, managing director, shareholder, or by managing it,
• have a residence in an EU member state.

A person may be appointed as transport manager only if they meet the above requirements and at least one of the following:

• are an employee of the company, or
• are a managing director of the company, or
• are a shareholder of the company.

It is important to note that a transport manager may manage the transport activities of a maximum of four different transport companies, with a combined total of up to 50 vehicles. This vehicle limit does not apply to a transport manager who is genuinely linked to the company and manages only one company.

The transport manager must also demonstrate the required professional competence, proven by a certificate of professional competence in road freight transport issued by the competent authority (District Office – Department of Road Transport) under special legislation. If you do not have this certificate, you can take an examination in the relevant subjects before an examination board.

 

(F) List of vehicles and proof of entitlement to use them for freight transport in Slovakia

Another condition for obtaining a freight transport license over 3.5 tons in Slovakia is proof that the vehicles used meet the following:

• They have been type-approved for road freight transport over 3.5 tons, meaning that the vehicles meet all the necessary standards required for road freight transport.
• The company applying for the license has a legal right to use the vehicles for freight transport. This legal right may be:
  • Ownership (i.e., the vehicle is company property, proven by a technical certificate or purchase contract).
  • Leasehold (proven by a lease contract, leasing agreement, etc.).

In addition, as part of the licensing process, the relevant District Office’s transport department requires copies of the technical certificates of the freight vehicles. In practice, they also require proof that there is one trailer for each tractor unit.

 

(G) Company transport regulations in Slovakia

Another requirement is to submit to the District Office a draft of the company’s transport regulations. This document contains all statutory transport conditions required for concluding a transport contract with the client.

The Slovak transport regulations must include in particular:

• the type of road transport operated and the scope of transport services provided,
• the manner of concluding and validity of the freight transport contract,
• the rights and obligations of the carrier, in particular the scope of liability for damage to the health of animals and to goods, luggage, or other property, and the resulting claims for compensation or freight discounts,
• in freight transport, in addition to transport conditions, the range of transport services provided to senders and recipients of goods and the scope of their cooperation with the carrier, in particular the rules for transporting different types of goods and live animals and the conditions for providing vehicles for loading and unloading.

The Slovak company, as a carrier, is obliged to publish its transport regulations on its website and in another suitable manner. The published transport regulations form part of the carrier’s proposal for a transport contract and, after conclusion, become part of the contractual rights and obligations.

 

Validity period of the issued freight transport license over 3.5 tons in Slovakia

The validity period for which the license is issued is 10 years.

 

Administrative fees for the Slovak freight transport license and Community license

The administrative fee for issuing a license to operate freight transport over 3.5 tons is €30. The administrative fee for issuing the first original of the Community license is €20 and €3 for each additional copy.

 

Step 3. Application for a Community license

If you wish to carry out international freight transport with your company, you must also request a so-called Community License. The Community License can be applied for only after the issuance of the freight transport license over 3.5 tons.

 

Step 4. Entry of the freight transport business activity into the Slovak Commercial Register

Once the company has obtained the relevant licenses to operate freight transport in Slovakia, it must enter this business activity into the Slovak Commercial Register. Registering freight transport as a business activity requires the preparation of the following documents:

• Decision of the sole shareholder (for a single-member LLC) or minutes of the general meeting (for an LLC with multiple shareholders) to extend the company’s business activities to include:
  • domestic road freight transport, and/or
  • international road freight transport (if the company also holds a Community License).
• Application to register a change in the company’s details in the Commercial Register: complete the change form for the LLC’s registration in the Commercial Register, sign it, and attach the required annexes, such as:
  • Freight transport operator license.
  • Community license.
  • The latest full version of the deed of incorporation, updated to include the new business activity, or the latest version of the articles of association (for multi-member LLCs).
  • Decision of the sole shareholder or minutes of the extraordinary general meeting on extending the business activities.
• The latest full version of the articles of association or deed of incorporation.

The application and annexes must be filed electronically with the Commercial Register, and a court fee of €33 must be paid. The change is registered within two working days from the date of filing.

 

Conclusion: Buying a Slovak ready-made company for freight transport as a possible solution

Setting up and obtaining a license for freight transport over 3.5 tons is a demanding and lengthy process that requires meeting several conditions and obtaining various licenses.

However, there is a faster and easier way to enter the freight transport sector. Buying a Slovak ready-made LLC with existing VAT registration allows you to start your business more quickly, as you already have an existing company and can use its existence to speed up registration and licensing.

This option saves you time and effort in starting a company and allows you to start operating in the freight transport sector sooner.

So, if you decide to enter the world of freight transport over 3.5 tons, be sure to consider buying a ready-made LLC to save time and effort. We wish you success in your business in this field!