Carriers who have not obtained authorization will not be able to take part in international freight transport as of 8 April

A regular meeting was held with carriers of international road freight transport, which was organized by the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport and Azerbaijan Land Transport Agency (AYNA).

Speaking at the event, Deputy Minister of Digital Development and Transport Rahman Hummatov said that over the past year there has been an increase in the number of carriers, an expansion of the fleet of vehicles used in transport, as well as an increase in the respective market shares of Azerbaijani carriers. The Deputy Minister noted that two years ago the number of vehicles used in international freight traffic was about 3 thousand, and in 2022 this number exceeded 8 thousand. The increase in the number of vehicles was due to the registration of carriers operating in the “shadow”, as a result of market transparency, the reactivation of inactive carriers, the transition of some of them from the domestic market to the international market, as well as the import of vehicles. As a result of the measures taken, the market shares of Azerbaijani carriers in all bilateral traffic directions have recently increased, and the participation of national carriers in traffic to third countries has expanded considerably.

It was stressed that the “Rules for admission to international passenger and freight transport by road”, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on 8 April 2022, will enter into force one year later, on 8 April 2023. According to the rules, carriers of international passenger and freight transport by road must meet criteria related to business reputation, financial position, professional competence, and training requirements for the operator’s drivers.

It was noted that the purpose of applying the admission rules is to stimulate entrepreneurship in the field of road transport, improve the competitiveness of national carriers on the international transport market and train drivers to meet more professional and international requirements.

Rahman Hummatov said that currently only 84 out of 218 companies’ documents meet the conditions of the admission rules. The number of vehicles of these companies is only 16% of the total fleet.

“Numerous educational meetings have been held at AYNA with the carriers and the necessary information about the admission rules has been provided. AYNA Training and Education Center, Azerbaijan Association of International Road Carriers (ABADA) and partner companies conduct competence trainings for drivers. To date, more than 4,000 drivers have participated in the trainings. In total, it is planned to involve more than 8,000 drivers in the training process," Rahman Hummatov added.

At the event, the first “Authorization to international road transport” was awarded to the carrier whose documents met the conditions of the admission rules.

Then the questions from carriers regarding the “Rules for admission to international passenger and freight transport by road” were answered.

It should be noted that according to the rules, carriers who have not received authorization or admission cards will not be able to participate in international freight transport as of 8 April, and legal entities and individuals will not be allowed to participate in the distribution of permit forms. Permit forms will be distributed according to the number of vehicles for which  permit cards  have been issued. Vehicles passing through customs checkpoints will be monitored through an appropriate registration system. The carrier will be excluded from distribution if it is found that a permit form has been issued for the vehicle, but no permit card has been issued.

In conclusion, it was once again brought to the attention of carriers that there was very little time left for obtaining authorization or admission cards. The number of carriers not submitting their documents is quite high.