Ukraine and the EU extended the transport visa-free regime

Ukraine and the European Union have extended the Agreement on the Liberalization of Freight Transport (transport visa-free regime) for another year with the possibility of its automatic extension until the end of 2025. This is stated in the message of the Ministry of Recovery.

The extension of the agreement was signed on June 20 in Brussels by Deputy Minister of Community Development, Territories and Infrastructure Serhiy Derkach and EU Commissioner for Transport Adina Veljan.

As noted, the transport visa-free regime will make it possible to carry out bilateral and transit cargo transportation without the need for permits.

The updated document also provides for a number of obligations for both Ukrainian and European carriers:

• the need for all drivers to have a license for transportation or other supporting documents during transportation;
• marking of trucks carrying out transportation in accordance with the agreement;
• carriers following empty goods must have supporting documents for the goods they plan to bring

In addition, a special working group will be set up to analyze the impact of the agreement on the market. It will include representatives of Ukraine and the EU.

«Ukraine is demonstrating practical results of integration into the EU’s economic and logistics space. The extension of the ‘transport visa-free regime’ is one of these steps. It will ensure positive dynamics of exports to the EU countries, which will make us more economically sustainable. In addition, permit-free freight transportation will speed up the receipt of goods and components by Ukrainian entrepreneurs for the development of their own production,» said Denys Shmyhal, Prime Minister of Ukraine.

According to Serhiy Derkach, the agreement is not only necessary for Ukraine, it also has a positive impact on the EU market. Thus, last year, compared to 2021, imports from the European Union to Ukraine increased by more than 45%. Exports of domestic goods by road also increased by 45%.

As noted in the relevant agency, before the full-scale invasion of Russia, road transportation between Ukraine and the EU was carried out on the basis of a fixed number of permits. The transport visa-free regime with the EU was signed in June 2022, which helped ensure the sustainability of transportation amid the destruction of sustainable logistics routes.

On May 13, 2024, the EU Council finally approved the extension of the duty-free trade regime for Ukraine for another 12 months, which means that the «trade visa-free regime» will now apply until June 2025.