Transport visa-free regime with EU countries extended until 2027

The European Commission will extend the Agreement with Ukraine on the Liberalization of Freight Transportation for another 15 months, at least until March 2027, Deputy Prime Minister for Recovery, Minister of Community and Territorial Development of Ukraine Oleksiy Kuleba has said.

“Today we agreed with the European Commission to extend the Agreement on the Liberalization of Freight Transportation for another 15 months, at least until March 2027,” he said in the Telegram channel on Thursday.

Kuleba said this means that “Ukrainian and European carriers will continue to be able to operate without special permits for bilateral and transit flights; we maintain the stability of exports, which bring billions of hryvnias to the budget; we guarantee the possibility of unhindered import of critically important goods. This is, without exaggeration, one of the most important events for the field of freight transportation and exports of Ukraine by road,” Kuleba said.

According to him, during the period of the transport visa-free regime, automobile exports and imports have increased by tens of percent. “This is a direct result of the fact that our economy has received new opportunities, and business has the freedom to work with EU countries. The specific weight of trade between Ukraine and the EU by road transport increased by almost 55%.

As reported, the Agreement on the Liberalization of Freight Transport between Ukraine and the European Union was signed in June 2022. In June 2024, the agreements were extended for the third time. At that time, the parties agreed that the liberalization would be automatically extended until the end of 2025 in the absence of a negative impact on the parties to the agreement and the absence of violations.

The extension of the agreements does not provide for changes in the rules: carriers must comply with current requirements, including truck marking, the presence of a license and documents for the cargo.

As part of the extension of the Liberalization Agreement, Ukraine has committed to further implementing regulations in the field of road transport that meet European integration obligations.

Thus, by the end of 2026, Ukraine must implement key provisions on the business reputation of companies, the use of smart tachographs, training managers of transport companies. These are the provisions of Law No. 4347, which was adopted in March of this year.

It is also noted that after July 1, 2026, new freight vehicles registered in Ukraine must be equipped with smart tachographs.