Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on electronic freight transport information
Date: 2018-06-04
Institutions: Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, European Commission
Subjects: carriage of goods, common transport policy, data processing, electronic document, exchange of information, information technology, transport document

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 4.6.2018  COM(2018) 279 final/2 2018/0140 (COD)  This document corrects document COM(2018) 279 final of 17.5.2018.  Concerns the English version.  Adding of references on page 9.  The text shall read as follows: Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on electronic freight transport information  (Text with EEA relevance) {SEC(2018) 231 final}  - {SWD(2018) 183 final}  - {SWD(2018) 184 final}  
 
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

• 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

Reasons for and objectives of the proposal 

Technological change is touching all parts of society and the economy and transforming the 
lives of EU citizens. Transport is no exception to this trend. New technologies are radically 
changing  the  mobility  landscape.  Against  this  background,  the  EU  and  its  industries  must 
meet the challenge to become a world leader in innovation, digitisation, and decarbonisation. 
The  Commission  has  therefore  adopted  a  comprehensive  approach  to  ensure  that  the  EU's 
mobility  policies  reflect  these  political  priorities  in  the  form  of  three  'Europe  on  the  Move' 
mobility packages.  

Following  the  Low-Emission  Mobility  Strategy,  the  Commission  adopted  two  mobility 
packages in May and November 2017. These packages set out a positive agenda delivering on 
the  low-emission  mobility  strategy  and  ensuring  a  smooth  transition  towards  clean, 
competitive  and  connected  mobility  for  all.  The  European  Parliament  and  Council  should 
ensure the rapid adoption of these proposals. 

This initiative is part of the Third "Europe on the Move" Package, which delivers on the new 
industrial  policy  strategy  of  September  2017,  and  is  designed  to  complete  the  process  of 
enabling Europe to reap the full benefits of the modernisation of mobility. It is essential that 
tomorrow's mobility system is safe, clean and efficient for all EU citizens. The aim is to make 
European mobility safer and more accessible, European industry more competitive, European 
jobs more secure, and to be cleaner and better adapted to the imperative of tackling climate 
change. This will require the full commitment of the EU, Member States and stakeholders, not 
least in strengthening investments in transport infrastructure. 

Total freight transport in the EU has increased by almost 25 % over the last 20 years1, and is 
projected  to  further  increase  by  51 %  during  2015-20502.  All  this  movement  of  goods  is 
accompanied by a large amount of information being exchanged among a variety of parties, in 
both the private and the public domain. Today, this information is mostly printed on paper, in 
a variety of standard format documents. 

About 99 % of cross-border transport operations on the territory of the EU still involve paper-
based  documents  at  one  stage  of  the  operation  or  another3.  Yet  the  digitalisation  of 
information exchange has the potential to significantly improve the efficiency of transport and 
therefore to contribute to the smooth functioning of the single market. 

The Commission carried out an impact assessment on the barriers to digitalisation of freight 
transport  documents  and  options  to  support  wider  use  of  electronic  documents  and 
information  exchange.  The  main  problem  it  identified  is  the  authorities’  low  and  varying 
degree  of  acceptance  of  information  or  documents  made  available  electronically  by 

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Measured in billion tonne-kilometres (tkm). Source: EU transport in figures 2017. 
A  description  of  developments  under  current  trends  and  policies  (i.e.  baseline)  is  available  in  Annex  4  of  the 
accompanying Impact Assessment report. 
More specifically, they require the use of paper documents at one point or another during the transport operation. In 
other  words,  only  1%  of  such  operations  is  accompanied  by  a  fully  digital  information  and  documentation 
exchange. However, their share varies depending on the transport mode. The estimate draws on the Ecorys et al. 
(2018) impact assessment support study. 

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businesses,  when  the  authorities  require  them  to  provide  evidence  of  compliance  with 
regulatory conditions for the transport of goods on the different EU Member States’ territory. 

There are two main drivers behind this problem:  

(a) 

(b) 

a  fragmented 
authorities  when  accepting  electronic 
permitting different administrative practices to implement them; and  

inconsistent  obligations  for 
information  or  documents4,  and 

legal  framework  setting 

a  fragmented  IT  environment  characterised  by  a  multitude  of  non-
interoperable  systems/solutions  for  electronic  transport  information  and 
documentation  exchange, both  for business-to-administration and business-to-
business communication. 

The two drivers are mutually reinforcing. The fragmented legislation and the resulting lack of 
acceptance by authorities discourage investment in digital solutions for electronic documents. 
The  fragmented  IT  environment,  specifically  the  lack  of  well-established  or  interoperable 
solutions, discourages authorities from trusting the use of electronic documents. 

As  a  consequence,  the  large  majority  of  freight  transport  operators  and  other  transport 
business stakeholders in the EU continue to use paper documents. This prevents considerable 
gains  in  efficiency  for  the  various  market  players,  in  particular  in  multimodal  and  cross-
border transport, and hinders the functioning of the EU single market. 

The  Commission  has  acknowledged  the  need  to  foster  acceptance  and  use  of  electronic 
transport documents in a number of policy initiatives: the White Paper on Transport, 20115, 
the  Digital  Single  Market  Strategy,  20156,  the  ICT  Standardisation  Priorities  for  the  Digital 
Single  Market,  20167  and  the  EU  eGovernment  Action  Plan  2016-20208.  The  case  for 
intervention has also been recognised by a wide range of stakeholders. 

Since  2015,  participants  in  the  Digital  Transport  and  Logistics  Forum  (DTLF)  —  a 
Commission expert group formed by more than one hundred private and public stakeholders9 
— have repeatedly emphasised the need for EU-level intervention to support wider uptake of 
electronic transport documents. In October 2017, in the Tallinn Declaration on eGovernment, 
the Member States urged the Commission to step up efforts to achieve efficient, user-centric, 
electronic  procedures  in  the  EU,  pointing  out  the  significance  of  the  eGovernment  Action 
Plan10 and the vision of the European Interoperability Framework11. 

In  November  2017,  during  the  Tallinn  Digital  Transport  Days,  several  public  and  private 
stakeholders from all transport sectors concluded that it is about time to reap the benefits of 

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The electronic representation of the information currently contained in paper documents does not need to amount to 
a  document  format  in  the  sense  of  a  standardised  representation  of  the  data.  In  that  sense,  the  term  ‘documents’ 
might  be  misleading.  An  explanation  of  the  merits  of  moving  away  from  a  document-centred  to  a  data-centred 
approach is provided in Annex 8 of the accompanying Impact Assessment report. 
COM/2011/0144, pp. 13, 19. 
COM(2015) 192, pp. 82-84. 
COM(2016) 176, p. 11. 
COM(2016) 179, p. 8. 
The  DTLF  was  set  up  by  the  Commission  in  April  2015  (Decision  C(2015)2259),  to  provide  a  platform  where 
Member States and relevant transport and logistics stakeholders can exchange technical knowledge, cooperate and 
coordinate with a view to supporting measures to promote efficient electronic exchange of information in transport 
and logistics. 
The Tallinn Declaration on eGovernment was signed at the ministerial meeting during the Estonian Presidency of 
the Council of the EU on 6 October 2017. 
https://ec.europa.eu/isa2/eif_en. 

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digitalisation,  including  paperless  data  sharing12.  Following  up,  the  Council  called  on  the 
Commission, in its December 2017 Conclusions on the digitalisation of transport, to continue 
working  with  the  DTLF  to  develop  ‘measures  to  support13  more  systematic  use  and 
acceptance  of  e-documents  and  the  harmonised  exchange  of  information  and  data  in  the 
logistic  chain’14.  Back  in  May  2017,  Parliament  had  also  called  on  the  Commission  to 
‘increase  harmonisation  in  passenger  transport  and  transport  of  goods’,  and  ‘speed  up  the 
mandatory use … of electronic consignment notes (e-CMR)’ in particular15.  

• 

Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area 

This proposal is consistent with current EU legislative provisions on the electronic exchange 
of  information  applicable  in  the  transport  sector.  These  legislative  provisions  vary 
significantly in: (i) their material scope  — i.e. the information or documents concerned; (ii) 
the regulatory purpose for which the information or documents are required; (iii) whether the 
possibility  to  communicate  the  information  electronically  is  established;  and  (iv)  whether 
more detailed technical specifications are provided on the means of electronic communication 
and form of the electronic information or documents when this possibility is established. This 
proposal  complements  the  existing  EU  legislation  in  this  area  and,  in  the  case  of  certain 
transport  sector-specific  EU  acts,  supplements  these  legal  acts  through  more  detailed 
functional requirements and technical specifications. 

Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council16 provides that 
an electronic document shall not be denied legal effect and admissibility as evidence in legal 
proceedings solely on the grounds that it is in electronic form. It also lays down the conditions 
for  cross-border  recognition  and  acceptance  of  electronic  identification  means  and  trust 
services  in  the  internal  market.  However,  it  does  not  oblige  Member  States  to  accept 
electronic  documents,  or  information  therein,  as  evidence  in  other  cases  than  in  legal 
proceedings.  By  establishing  a  uniform  Union  legislative  framework  requiring  the  cross-
border  acceptance  of  electronic  freight  transport  information  by  public  authorities,  this 
proposal complements the provisions in that Regulation. 

Regulation  (EU)  No  952/2013  on  the  Union  Customs  Code17  and  the  Directive  No 
2010/65/EU  on  reporting  formalities  for  ships18  already  contain  provisions  allowing 
fulfilment  of  reporting  formalities  by  means  of  electronic  information  communication, 
including as regards the cargo and, respectively, the transport operation. This proposal aims to 
allow  electronic  communication  for  fulfilling  regulatory  information  requirements  also 
beyond the points of entry, or before the point of exit, of the EU, on the entire territory of the 
Union.  Geographically therefore,  the  scope  of  this  initiative  begins  where  that  of the  Union 

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The  Digital  Transport  Days  Declaration  was  signed  in  Tallinn  on  10  November  2017  and  is  available  at 
https://ec.europa.eu/transport/modes/road/news/2017-11-10-digital-transport-days-declaration_en. 
P8_TA(2017)0228. 
Council Conclusions on the digitalisation of transport, 15050/17, 5.12.2017. 
European Parliament resolution 2017/2545(RSP) of 18 May 2017 on road transport in the EU. 
Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council on electronic identification and trust 
services  for  electronic  transactions  in  the  internal  market  and  repealing  Directive  1999/93/EC  (OJ  L  257, 
28.8.2014, p. 73). 
Regulation  (EU)  No  952/2013  laying  down  the  Union  Customs  Code  (UCC);  Commission  Implementing 
Regulation (EU) 2015/2447 laying down detailed rules for implementing certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 
952/2013;  Commission  Delegated  Regulation  (EU)  2015/2446  supplementing  Regulation  (EU)  No  952/2013  as 
regards detailed rules concerning certain provisions of the UCC.  
Directive No 2010/65/EU on reporting formalities for ships arriving in and/or departing from ports of the Member 
States. 

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Customs Code Regulation and/or the Maritime Reporting Formalities Directive the RFD ends 
(or, conversely, ends there where that of the latter begins).  

In  terms  of  the  transport  operations  concerned  by  the  information  requirements,  however, 
these scopes overlap: this initiative concerns both purely intra-EU international transport (not 
falling  under  Union  Customs  Code’s  Regulation  scope  or  that  of  the  Maritime  Reporting 
Formalities  Directive),  as  well  as  international  transport  having  its  origin,  destination  or 
transiting  an  EU  Member  State's  territory  .  As  a  result,  the  combined  application  of  this 
initiative  and  that  of  these  two  EU  acts  will  further  facilitate  international  freight  transport 
having its origin and destination outside the EU, as well as intra-EU maritime traffic. It will 
enable  the  use  of  electronic  means  for  transmission  of  regulatory  information  on  cargo 
transport to  the  authorities  not  just  at  the  point  of  entry  and exit  of  the  EU,  but  also  on  the 
entire EU territory. 

In  relation  to  Union  legislation  regulating  the  conditions  of  transport  on  the  territory  of  the 
Union,  this  proposal  does  not  amend  existing  provisions  in  existing  relevant  legal  acts,  but 
rather seeks to ensure: 

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a)  the  establishment  of  a  uniform  legal  framework  for  the  acceptance,  including 
specific  requirements,  of  electronic  information  or  documents  containing  this 
information, in the case of legal acts which: 

either do not provide at all for the possibility to present the information/documents 
electronically, namely:  

Regulation  no  11/1960  on  concerning  the  abolition  of  discrimination  in  transport 
rates and conditions ;  

Council Directive 92/106/EEC on the establishment of common rules for combined 
transport of goods between Member States; and  

Regulation (EC) No 1072/2009 on common rules for access to the international road 
haulage market; or 

include such possibility, but do not indicate, or provide very limited indication, 
on how this information should be presented electronically, namely:  

Directive 2008/68/EC on dangerous goods in rail, road and inland waterways;  

Commission Regulation 2015/1998 implementing Regulation (EC) No 300/2008 on 
common rules for aviation safety;  

Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 on shipments of waste; 

 

 

 

the  proposals,  currently  under  consideration  by  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council, for the revision of Directive 92/106/EEC (Proposal No 2017/0290 (COD)) 
and,  respectively,  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  1072/2009  (Proposal  No  2017/0123 
(COD)). 

b)  the  interoperability  of  the  different  IT  systems  currently  used  for  those  legal 
acts which:  

already  provide  very  detailed  technical  specifications:  on  the  format  of  the 
electronic data and message exchange for acceptance by authorities for certain goods 
related and transport operation related information, regardless of the transport mode 
concerned, namely Regulation (EU) No. 952/2013 on the Union Customs Code and 

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its  implementing  and  delegated  acts,  and  the  Directive  2010/65/EU  on  maritime 
reporting formalities; 

 

contain  detailed  but  transport  mode-specific  specifications,  namely  Commission 
Regulation No. 164/2010 on the technical specifications for electronic ship reporting 
in inland navigation referred to in Article 5 of Directive 2005/44/EC on harmonised 
river information services (RIS) and Commission  Regulation EU No 1305/2014  on 
the technical specification for interoperability relating to the telematics applications 
for rail freight (TAF TSI). 

• 

Consistency with other Union policies 

The  general  objective  of  the  initiative  is  to  enable  wider  use  of  digital  technologies  to 
contribute  to:  (i)  removing  barriers  to  the  smooth  functioning  of  the  single  market;  (ii)  the 
modernisation  of  the  economy;  and  (iii)  the  greater  efficiency  of  the  transport  sector.  By 
establishing  uniform  conditions  for  the  further  development  and  deployment  of  digital 
technologies for electronic exchange of freight transport information, it will also contribute to 
the development of the Digital Single Market. 

2. 

• 

LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY 

Legal basis 

The legal basis is provided by Article 91, 100(2) and Article 192(1) of the Treaty on 
the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). .  

Articles 91 and, respectively 100(2), which must be understood in light of Article 90 
requiring  Member  States  to  pursue  a  common  transport  policy,  set  out  the 
requirement  that  common  rules  applicable  to  international  transport  to  or  from  the 
territory  of a  Member  State  or  passing  across  the  territory  of  one  or  more  Member 
States  and,  respectively,  appropriate  provisions  for  sea  and  air  transport,  be  laid 
down by the European Parliament and the Council. 

Article 192(1), which must be understood in light of Article 191, establishes that the 
European  Parliament  and  the  Council  shall  decide  on  the  action  to  be  taken  by  the 
Union in order to achieve the objective for protecting inter alia human health and the 
environment. 

• 

Subsidiarity (for non-exclusive competence) 

Unilateral initiatives by Member States to facilitate the uptake of electronic transport 
documents and information exchange would have limited effect if similar action was 
not taken in other Member States whose territory is also concerned by the transport 
operations in question. 

At  the  same  time,  even  if  most  EU  Member  States  were  to  enact  legislation 
facilitating  the  use  of  electronic  documents,  there  is  a  high  risk  that  by  legislating 
unilaterally,  each  Member  State  would  adopt  different  requirements  for  the 
the  communication  of  regulatory 
acceptance  of  electronic  documents,  and 
information more generally, as valid and authentic. In practice, electronic documents 
and  regulatory  information  communication  which  fulfilled  the  requirements  for 
acceptance in one Member State would not be accepted in the other(s), thus creating 
barriers in the EU single market. 

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The most appropriate level to address the problem and its drivers is therefore the EU 
level,  where  a  uniform  approach  to  the  acceptance  of  electronic  documents,  and 
common standards for this, can be set. In that respect, this initiative takes further and 
complements  measures  already  taken  at  EU  level  to  ensure  uniform  conditions  for 
acceptance  of  electronic  freight  transport  information  and  documents,  including  by 
ensuring trust in the electronic means used to communicate them19. 

• 

Proportionality 

The proposal contains measures intended to  achieve three  distinct  specific policy objectives 
that directly address the two main problem drivers identified.  

To  address  the  main  problem  driver,  namely  the  diverging  and  limitedly  specified  current 
legal framework, this proposal contains measures to: 

(1) 

(2) 

ensure the establishment, in all EU Member States, of the obligation of acceptance of 
electronic freight transport documents/information by all relevant public authorities; 

ensure  that  the  authorities  implement  the  obligation  of  acceptance  in  a  uniform 
manner; 

To  address  the  second  problem  driver,  which  derives  from  the  current  co-existence  of 
multiple and non-interoperable systems, the proposal contains measures to: 

(3) 

ensure  the  interoperability  of  the  IT  systems  and  solutions  used  for  the  electronic 
exchange  of  freight  transport  information,  and  in  particular  for  business-to-
administration (B2A) regulatory information communication. 

None of these measures go beyond what is necessary to address the problems. The first set of 
measures establish the obligation for authorities to accept electronic information/documents, 
but do not impose an obligation on businesses to use the electronic form, neither in B2A nor 
in  B2B  (business-to-business)  relations.  Imposing  such  an  obligation  on  B2B  exchanges 
would ensure full digitalisation of freight transport information and document exchanges, but 
it is not necessary in order to ensure acceptance on the part of the authorities. Furthermore, 
most  industry  associations  argued  that  businesses  are  ready  and  will  move  towards  full 
digitalisation when the authorities eventually allow it.  

At  the  same  time,  the  authorities  are  not  required  to  accept  just  any  electronic  source  of 
information  provided  by  businesses.  Rather,  the  measures  take  into  account  the  authorities’ 
need for the information/documents presented to be authentic and for assurances about their 
integrity. The measures also require the authorities to accept the information/documents if the 
electronic means used to present them comply with a determined set of requirements.  

The  second  set  of  measures  requires  Member  States  to  cooperate  in  order  to  align  their 
(future)  digitalised  processes 
information/documents  communicated 
electronically.  This  includes  cooperation  over  the  set  of  data  elements  Member  State 
authorities require as necessary for fulfilling the information requirements established in the 
relevant EU and national legal acts. These measures will ensure uniform rules for electronic 
information/document verification, and will contribute to reducing administrative compliance 
costs (and therefore burden) for businesses. However, the measures do not require uniformity 

for  checking 

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Including  the  framework  for  the  cross-border  use  of  eIDs  and  electronic  signatures  as  established  by  the  eIDAS 
Regulation. 

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of the information requirements themselves as established in the respective EU and Member 
State legislation. 

The third set of measures establishes the functional requirements for the electronic means that 
businesses could use to provide authorities with the requested regulatory information. These 
measures  also  provide  for  the  development  of  technical  specifications  to  implement  the 
requirements. These requirements and the related technical specifications will ensure that the 
IT systems used by the different Member State authorities are interoperable with each other 
and  with  the  solutions  used  by  businesses.  The  requirements  and  specifications  will  also 
facilitate interoperability across the (currently highly transport mode-specific) B2A and B2B 
solutions. 

• 

Choice of the instrument 

The impact assessment established that binding, regulatory measures are necessary to achieve 
the  objectives.  A  regulation  is  the  more  appropriate  instrument  to  ensure  uniform 
implementation  of  the  measures  envisaged.  A  directive  would  establish  the  obligation  to 
accept  electronically  presented  information,  with  common  functional  requirements  to  be 
complied  with  by  the  electronic  means  by  which  the  information  is  made  available,  but  it 
would not impose common binding technical requirements. 

Current  developments,  including  in  the  context  of  the  implementation  of  the  Reporting 
Formalities Directive, indicate that having no guidelines or voluntary guidelines for technical 
specifications would result in the introduction of multiple and non-interoperable systems by 
the different Member States20. That would increase compliance costs for businesses, as they 
would  need  to  invest  in  different  systems  responding  to  different  Member  States’ 
requirements.  As  a  result,  businesses  might  prefer  to  continue  carrying  paper,  severely 
hampering the attainment of the objective. 

The initiative is highly technical, and there is a high likelihood that it will have to be regularly 
adapted to technical and legal developments. To respond to this, a number of implementing 
measures  are  also  planned.  These  will  focus  particularly  on  the  technical  specifications  to 
implement the functional requirements. 

3. 

• 

RESULTS  OF  STAKEHOLDER  CONSULTATIONS  AND 
ASSESSMENT 

IMPACT 

Stakeholder consultations 

The  Commission  actively  engaged  with  stakeholders  and  conducted  comprehensive 
consultations throughout the impact assessment process. The consultation activities included: 

 

 

20 

an  open  public  consultation  (OPC)  organised  by  the  Commission,  running  from 
25 October 2017 to 18 January 2018; 

an  SME  panel 
24 November 2017 to 22 January 2018; 

survey  organised  by 

the  Commission, 

running 

from 

Differences in requirements between the different authorities, both within and between Member States, are to be 
expected. Examples collected during the impact assessment process are clear testimony to this. 

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 

 

 

 

 

a  legal  survey  of  private  and  public  stakeholders  organised  by  the  consultant 
responsible for the impact assessment support study, running from 23 October 2017 
to 1 January 2018; 

a  targeted  survey  of  private  and  public  stakeholders  organised  by  the  consultant 
responsible for the impact assessment support study, running from 27 October 2017 
to 7 January 2018; 

50  interviews  with  stakeholders,  including  industry  representatives  and  national 
authorities,  conducted  by  the  consultant  responsible  for  the  impact  assessment 
support study and its partners between 20 October 2017 and 15 January 2018; 

stakeholder meetings and workshops at several different events; 

five  case  studies  examined  by the consultant responsible  for  the  impact  assessment 
support study between 6 November 2017 and 15 January 2018. 

These consultation activities provided significant input that helped validate and elaborate the 
definition  of  the  problem  and  estimate  its  size,  and  map  stakeholders’  preferences  for  the 
possible  policy  options.  Input  in  this  area  came  primarily  from  the  OPC,  the  SME  panel 
survey and from the other stakeholder engagement tools used21. 

The  large  majority  of  the  stakeholder  consulted  —  i.e.  more  than  90 %  of  the  265  SME 
respondents  to  the  SME  panel  survey22,  and  88  of  the  100  respondents  to  the  OPC  survey, 
indicated significant or at least some expected benefits from adopting electronic information 
exchange. 

90 %  of  the  private  companies  and  associations  responding  to  the  OPC  indicated  the  non-
acceptance  of  electronic  transport  documents/information  by  Member  State  authorities  as  a 
significant driver of the problem. For the smaller companies, the SME panel survey found that 
the  main  reason  for  not  using  electronic  transport  documents  was  that  their  clients  and 
business  partners  do  not  use  transport  documents  in  an  electronic  format.  The  next  most 
widely  cited  reason  for  this  group  (following  closely  behind)  was  non-acceptance  by  the 
authorities. At the same time, respondents to the targeted surveys and interviews highlighted 
that the main reason why businesses do not accept electronic documents is uncertainty as to 
whether the authorities will accept them. More than 70 % of the respondents to both the OPC 
and the SME panel also cited the lack of interoperability of current B2A and B2B IT systems 
and solutions. 

Mirroring this  assessment,  around  90 %  of  the  respondents of  the  OPC  considered ensuring 
acceptance  by  Member  State  authorities,  while  88%  found  a  legally  binding  approach  to 
ensuring such acceptance more effective than a non-binding one. 90% of all OPC respondents 
also indicated as important the interoperability of B2A and B2B communications. Similarly, 
75%  of  the  SME  panel  respondents  indicated  ensuring  acceptance  by  authorities  as  a  very 
important policy objectives, and another 13% as moderately important.  

More  than  70 %  of  both  the  OPC  and  SME  panel  respondents  would  also  welcome 
standardised  technical  specifications  for  sharing  data  between  logistics  operators  and  the 
public administration, with 88 % of OPC respondents considering a legally binding approach 

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The summary below is based on the responses received to the OPC and SME panel surveys. For a more detailed 
description of the consultation results, including input received in the interviews and case studies undertaken by the 
external consultant, see Ecorys et al. (2018) Impact Assessment support study, Annexes VIII-XI. 
The number of respondents who answered the benefits-related questions in the SME panel survey varied between 
230 and 250, depending on the specific benefits identified in the different questions. 

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more  effective  than  non-binding  measures.  For  B2B  communication,  67 %  of  all  100  OPC 
respondents  considered  the  legally  binding  approach  more  effective,  while  84 %  preferred 
voluntary  measures.  77%  of  the  SME  panel  survey  respondents  indicated  as  very  important 
(65%)  or  moderately  important  (22%),  the  ability  to  use  one  IT  application/system  to 
exchange  electronic  transport  documents  with  the  authorities,  on  par  with  the  ability  of  use 
such  a  single  application/system  for  electronic  exchange  with  all  other  companies  (68% 
indicating it as very important, and the additional 19% as moderately important). 

• 

Collection and use of expertise 

The  proposal  is  based  on  fact-finding  and  consultation  with  experts,  particularly  for  the 
estimates  of  costs  and  benefits,  including  modelling  of  the  indirect  effects  and  modal  shift 
impact.  External  consultants  prepared  a  support  study  on  costs  and  impacts.  External 
consultants  have  also  been  used  for  modelling  the  indirect  effects  and  assessing  the  modal 
shift impact. 

Experts from all main stakeholder categories, both from the industry and from Member State 
authorities, were closely involved, particularly in the Digital Transport and Logistics Forum. 
This helped to ensure a comprehensive and multimodal perspective on the issues at stake. 

• 

Impact assessment 

The  policy  measures  included  in  this  proposal  are  informed  by  the  results  of  an  impact 
assessment. The impact assessment report [  SWD(2018)  184]  received  a  positive  opinion 
from  the  Commission  Regulatory  Scrutiny  Board  [SEC(2018)  231].  In  its  opinion,  the 
Regulatory Scrutiny Board provided a number of recommendations about the presentation of 
the arguments in the impact assessment report. These recommendations have been addressed; 
Annex 1 to the impact assessment report provides a summary outline of how this was done. 

A long list of policy measures addressing the two main problem drivers was considered after 
extensive  consultations  with  stakeholders,  expert  meetings,  independent  research  and  the 
Commission’s  own  analysis.  The  list  was  subsequently  screened  based  on  the  following 
criteria: (i) legal, political and technical feasibility; (ii) effectiveness; (iii) efficiency; and (iv) 
proportionality. Based on this initial screening, a number of policy measures were discarded. 

The selected policy measures were grouped into four distinct policy options: 

 

 

 

 

Option  1:  Full  obligation  for  Member  States  to  comply  with  the  current  legal 
framework  as  regards  acceptance  of  electronic  transport  contracts,  with  voluntary 
harmonisation of implementation 

Option 2: Full obligation for Member State authorities to accept electronic transport 
contracts, with minimum harmonisation of implementation 

Option  3:  Full  obligation  for  Member  State  authorities  to  accept  regulatory  cargo 
transport information or documentation, with partially harmonised implementation 

Option  4:  Full  obligation  for  Member  State  authorities  to  accept  regulatory  cargo 
transport information or documentation, with fully harmonised implementation 

All  options  contained,  for  the  most  part,  the  same  set  of  policy  measures.  These  measures 
could be implemented either in non-binding form, as support measures promoting voluntary 
action by the Member States, or regulatory form, such as the adoption of a new dedicated EU 

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legal act and the signature of bilateral agreements with third countries. The logic of the policy 
options building followed a combination of these measures, with variation along two axes: the 
material scope of the policy initiative, on the one hand, and levels of regulatory strength of the 
intervention, on the other. 

A comparative analysis of the effectiveness, efficiency, costs and benefits of the four options 
was then conducted. This analysis showed that: (i) the implementation of policy options 3 or 4 
would produce very similar cost and benefit ratios; and (ii) both options would significantly 
contribute  to  solving  the  identified  problems,  with  significantly  higher  effectiveness  in 
achieving the specific and overall policy goals than options 1 or 2. 

The high effectiveness of options 3 and 4 results, on the one hand, from the wider scope of 
information coverage in the obligation of acceptance and, on the other hand, from the higher 
degree  of specification of the binding requirements for acceptance  of electronic means. The 
obligation  of  acceptance  is  not  defined  in  terms  of  specific  documents,  as  is  the  case  of 
options  1  and  2,  but  in  terms  of  ‘information’  required  by  EU  and  national  legislation 
regulating the conditions of international freight transport on the territory of the EU Member 
States. As such, not only electronic contracts of carriage are covered, but also any electronic 
information rendition formats, provided there is compliance with: (i) the information content 
requirements of the applicable legislation; and (ii) the requirements for the electronic means 
by  which  this  information  can  be  made  available,  established  in  the  framework  of  the  new 
legal act proposed. 

Option  3  was  the  preferred  policy  option  on  the  basis  of  which  this  proposal  has  been 
developed. The choice between options 3 and 4 took account of the views of stakeholders, as 
well  as  considerations  about  proportionality.  Industry  stakeholders  in  the  maritime,  aviation 
and  rail  sectors  in  particular  clearly  made  the  point  that  while  a  multimodal  approach  is 
necessary, the Commission should avoid proposing a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution23. The main 
considerations  relate  to  the  investments  in  related  solutions  already  made  in  these  sectors. 
These  solutions  have  been  developed  on  the  basis  of  current  provisions  in  international 
conventions and EU law which, as  the legal  analysis in  this  report has also highlighted,  are 
mode-specific and differ significantly. 

The imposition of fully common technical specifications for interoperability, for all solutions 
used for B2A regulatory information communication and in all transport modes, as proposed 
in option 4, would require higher upfront investments by businesses in these sectors to adapt 
to the new requirements. 

Under option 3, the extent to which such cross-modal common technical specifications will be 
established would be determined on the basis of a specific impact assessment. The purpose of 
this  impact  assessment  would  be  to  more  accurately  establish  the  minimum  necessary 
common cross-sectoral technical specifications that would ensure interoperability between all 
related systems used by authorities and with the solutions used by businesses, while achieving 
the best cost-benefit ratio for compliance costs by businesses and future benefits.  

The  assumption,  based  on  industry  stakeholders’  arguments,  is  that  a  sufficient  level  of 
interoperability can be ensured without requiring full harmonisation of requirements across all 
transport modes. More specifically, according to most industry stakeholders, interoperability 

23 

See  for  e.g.  ECSA  and  WSC  (maritime),  as  well  as  CER  (rail)  position  papers  sent  in  reaction  to  the  inception 
impact  assessment  (IIA).  IATA  has  been  actively  participating  in  almost  all  stakeholder  consultation  seminars 
organised, where they have also clearly stated such position. 

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would  require,  as  a  minimum,  a  common  multimodal  data  dictionary24.  Technical 
specifications  implementing  other  requirements,  such  as  those  related  to  authenticity  or 
integrity, may be developed specifically for the different transport modes, should a separate, 
dedicated  impact  assessment  analysis  conclude  that  such  an  approach  would  be  most  cost-
efficient for some of the (common) requirements.  

The  main  expected  benefits  of  the  preferred  policy  option  are  of  an  economic  and 
environmental  nature.  The  industry  is  expected  to  make  savings  worth  EUR  20-27  billion 
over 2018-2040, compared to a scenario where no policy intervention at EU level is made (the 
baseline), thanks to reduction in administrative costs (i.e. costs related to the management and 
exchange of transport information  and documentation). This is  equivalent  to  75-102 million 
hours  saved  yearly  (or  36-49  thousand  full-time  employees  equivalent).  Road  transport 
operators,  99%  of  which  are  SMEs,  are  expected  to  benefit  of  about  60%  of  all  industry 
administrative costs savings.  

Positive environmental impacts are also expected, due to a decrease in road transport’s modal 
share  in  2030  relative  to  the  baseline.  In  cumulative  terms,  CO2  emissions  savings  are 
estimated  to  be  cut  by  at  above  1,300  thousand  tonnes  over  2018-2040,  relative  to  the 
baseline, equivalent to €74 million external costs savings. Congestion costs are projected to be 
reduced  by  almost  EUR  300  million  relative  to  the  baseline  over  the  same  time  period.  In 
addition, with an average of 1-5 copies of each document per shipment not printed anymore 
about 2-8 billion sheets of paper would be saved, or the equivalent of 180-900 thousand trees 
annually. 

The main expected costs, are related to investments necessary to comply with the new policy 
requirements. The costs for public authorities are estimated at around EUR 268 million over 
the  full  deployment  horizon  of  electronic  transport  documents,  relative  to  the  baseline,  of 
which EUR 17 million related to the certification of solution providers and EUR 251 million 
to  enforcement.  In  addition,  national  administrations  will  be  expected  to  invest  in  new  IT 
systems,  or  to  adjust  the  existing  ones;  these  costs  are  unlikely  to  be  significant.  For 
businesses, the compliance costs are expected to be in the range of EUR 4.4 billion.  

Employment impacts can be slightly negative in case personnel made redundant by reduced 
documentation management activities is not redeployed to other tasks. This negative impact is 
expected  to  be  offset  to  a  large  extent  by  the  overall  sector  growth.  Greater  demand  for  IT 
solutions and systems is likely to bring more opportunities for the IT providers, leading to an 
increase in high-skilled employment. 

Slight  negative  externalities  may  occur  from  the  increase  of  air  pollution  from  waterborne 
transport, estimated at around EUR 41 million over the full deployment horizon of electronic 
transport documents, relative to the baseline.  

• 

Regulatory fitness and simplification 

The  proposal  offers  significant  simplification  and  improved  efficiency  by  reducing  the 
administrative  burden  for  economic  operators  when  fulfilling  regulatory  information 
requirements in connection with the transport of goods on the territory of the Union.  

24 

73% of the respondents in an interactive feedback session during the workshop on e-docs in Tallinn were in favour 
of the establishment of standardised technical specifications for sharing data between logistics operators and public 
administrations. Likewise, the TLF Union proposed the establishment of a single data set at EU level. According to 
the targeted interviews (source Ecorys et al.) the group of freight forwarders stressed the importance of a common 
data  set  enforced  through  EU  legislation.  The  need  for  a  common  data  set  was  also  specifically  indicated  in  the 
position paper of Finland’s government on this initiative. 

EN 

11 

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Reduced  administrative  burden  is  expected  to  be  achieved  by:  ensuring  that  economic 
operators can make regulatory information available to authorities electronically; and aligning 
the  procedures  used  by  Member  State  authorities  to  check  regulatory  information  made 
available  electronically.  As  highlighted  earlier,  administrative  costs  for  the  industry  are 
expected to fall significantly.  

SMEs  and  micro-enterprises  will  especially  benefit  from  being  able  to  provide  authorities 
with the required regulatory information in a simplified and aligned manner regardless of the 
Member  State  or  competent  authorities.  This  is  because  SMEs  and  micro-enterprises  are 
proportionally more vulnerable to inefficient administration and lost staff hours. 

• 

Fundamental rights 

The proposal has an impact on the protection of personal data guaranteed in Article 8 of the 
Charter. Any processing of personal data under the proposal shall be done in accordance with 
the EU legislation on the protection of personal data, in particular the General Data Protection 
Regulation. 

4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS 

The preferred option does not have budgetary implications. 

5. 

• 

OTHER ELEMENTS 

Implementation plans and monitoring, evaluation and reporting arrangements 

The Commission will follow the progress, impacts and results of this initiative through a set 
of  monitoring/evaluation  mechanisms.  The  Commission  will  measure  progress  towards 
achieving the specific objectives of the new proposal. 

Requests for information (reports, survey replies) will be carefully balanced so as not to put 
an additional burden on stakeholders by creating disproportionate new reporting requests. 

Five years after the end of the implementation date of the legal proposal, the Commission will 
initiate  an  evaluation  to  verify  whether  the  initiative’s  objectives  have  been  reached.  The 
evaluation  will  be  based  on  Member  States’  reports,  stakeholder  surveys  and  other  inputs 
(such as complaints) from shipping operators. Subsequently, the evaluation will inform future 
decision-making processes to ensure the necessary adjustments for reaching the set objectives. 

• 

Detailed explanation of the specific provisions of the proposal 

The  proposal  is  divided  into  five  chapters.  The  first  and  last  chapters  introduce  the  general 
scope  and  some  horizontal  provisions,  while  Chapters  II-IV  provide  the  more  detailed 
instruments. 

Article 1 lays down the scope of this Regulation. 

Article 2 contains provisions on powers delegated to the Commission to amend non-essential 
elements  in  the  Annex  1  to  this  Regulation,  where  the  regulatory  information  requirements 
falling under the scope of the Regulation are listed. 

Article 3 contains the definitions. 

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12 

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Article  4  lays  down  requirements  relative  to  the  electronic  format  in  which  regulatory 
transport information (eFTI) should be made available by the economic operators concerned. 

Article 5 establishes the obligation of the Member States’ competent authorities of regulatory 
information made available electronically by the economic operators concerned in compliance 
with the conditions laid down in Article 4. 

Article 6 requires the competent authorities, eFTI services providers and economic operators 
concerned  to  take  measures  to  ensure  the  confidentiality  of  the  information  processed  and 
exchanged in accordance with this Regulation.  

Article  7  establishes  the  obligation  of  the  Commission  to  adopt  implementing  acts 
establishing a common data set and subsets in relation the regulatory requirements under the 
scope  of  this  Regulation,  and  laying  down  common  procedures  and  rules  for  access  to  and 
processing  by  the  competent  authorities  of  regulatory  information  provided  electronically. 
This  should  ensure  uniform  implementation  by  Member  States’  authorities  of  the  measures 
implementing the obligation to accept regulatory information made available electronically. 

Article 8 sets out the functional requirements for the eFTI platforms by the means of which 
the regulatory information could be made available by the economic operators concerned, and 
empowers  the  Commission  to  adopt  implementing  acts  laying  detailed  rules  for  their 
implementation.  These  requirements  aim  to  ensure  that  management  of  data  by  means  of 
these platforms can be done in a manner that ensures essential aspects such as the availability, 
authenticity,  integrity,  confidentiality  and  security  of  data.  These  requirements  are  general, 
and the detailed rules for their implementation are also envisaged to be drawn such that they 
remain  open  to  any  current  or  future  technology  that  would  be  able  to  ensure  these 
functionalities. 

Article 9 sets out requirements for the eFTI services providers that would provide regulatory 
information services to the economic operators concerned on the basis of eFTI platforms. 

Article 10, Article 11 and Article 12 establish the rules for a certification system of the eFTI 
platforms and the eFTI services providers. 

Article 13 establishes the conditions for the conferral of delegated powers to the Commission 
under this Regulation. 

Article  14  establishes  the  committee  procedure  for  the  exercise  by  the  Commission  of  the 
power to adopt implementing acts under this Regulation.  

Article 15 requires the Commission to carry out an evaluation of the implementation of this 
Regulation, in order to assess performance of this Regulation against the objective it has been 
set out to pursue. It also requires the Member States to assist the Commission in gathering the 
necessary information to prepare the evaluation report.  

Article  16  establishes  the  obligation  of  the  Member  State  to  provide  every  two  years,  on  a 
yearly basis, specific information aimed at monitoring the impacts of the implementation of 
this Regulation. 

Article  17  contains  provisions  related  to  the  date  of  entry  into  force  and,  respectively,  of 
application of this Regulation.  

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13 

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2018/0140 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on electronic freight transport information  

(Text with EEA relevance) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 91, Article 100(2) and Article 192(1) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee25,  

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions26,  

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

The efficiency of freight transport and logistics is vital for the competitiveness of the 
Union  economy,  the  functioning  of  the  internal  market  and  the  social  and  economic 
cohesion of all regions of the Union. 

The  movement  of  goods  is  accompanied  by  a  large  amount  of  information  which  is 
still  exchanged  in  paper  format,  among  businesses  and  between  businesses  and  the 
public authorities. The use of paper documents represents a significant administrative 
burden for logistic operators. 

The absence of a uniform legal framework at Union level requiring public authorities 
to  accept  relevant  freight  transport  information,  required  by  legislation,  in  electronic 
form,  is  considered  to  be  the  main  reason  for  the  lack  of  progress  towards  the 
simplification and greater efficiency made possible by available electronic means. The 
lack of acceptance by public authorities of information in electronic form affects not 
only ease of communication between them and operators but, indirectly, also hampers 
the  development  of  simplified  business-to-business  electronic  communication  across 
the Union.  

(4) 

Some  areas  of  Union  transport  law  require  competent  authorities  to  accept  digitised 
information,  but  this  concerns  by  far  not  all  relevant  Union  legislation.  It  should  be 
possible  to  use  electronic  means  to  make  regulatory  information  on  freight  transport 
available to the authorities throughout the territory of the Union and in respect of all 

25 
26 

OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 

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14 

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relevant phases of transport operations conducted within the Union. Furthermore, that 
possibility should apply to all regulatory information, in all transport modes. 

(5)  Member  States’  authorities  should  therefore  be  required  to  accept  information  made 
available  electronically  whenever 
  economic  operators  are  obliged  to  make 
information  available  as  proof  of  compliance  with  requirements  laid  down  in  Union 
acts adopted in accordance Title VI of Part Three of the Treaty or, given the similarity 
of the situations, with Union legislation on the shipments of waste. The same should 
apply where a Member  State’s national legislation dealing with  matters governed by 
Title  VI  of Part  Three of  the  Treaty  requires  the  provision  of  regulatory  information 
identical,  in  whole  or  in  part,  to  information  to  be  provided  under  such  Union 
legislation.  

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

Since  this  Regulation  is  only  intended  to  facilitate  the  provision  of  information, 
specifically,  by  electronic  means,  it  should  not  affect  the  provisions  of  Union  or 
national  law  determining  the  content  of  regulatory  information  and,  in  particular, 
should  not  impose  any  additional  regulatory  information  requirements.  While  this 
Regulation is intended to allow compliance with regulatory information requirements 
through electronic means rather by means of paper documents, it should not otherwise 
affect  the  relevant  Union  provisions  on  requirements  regarding  the  documents  to  be 
used for the structured presentation of the information in question. The provisions of 
Union  legislation  on  shipments  of  waste  containing  procedural  requirements  for  the 
shipments  as  should  equally  remain    unaffected  by  this  Regulation.  This  Regulation 
should also be without prejudice to the provisions on reporting obligations set out in 
Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 or in implementing or delegated acts adopted under its 
terms. 

The use of electronic means for the exchange of information in accordance with this 
Regulation  should  be  organised  in  a  way  that  ensures  security  and  respects  the 
confidentiality of sensitive commercial information.  

In order to enable operators to provide relevant information in electronic form in the 
same way in all Member States, it is necessary to rely on common specifications, to be 
adopted by the Commission. Those specifications should ensure data interoperability 
for  the  various  data  sets  and  subsets  concerning  the  relevant  regulatory  information, 
and determine common procedures and detailed rules for access and processing of that 
information by the competent authorities.  

In defining those specifications, due account should be taken of relevant data exchange 
specifications  laid  down  in  relevant  Union  law,  and  in  relevant  European  and 
international standards for multimodal data exchange, as well as of the principles and 
recommendations  set  out  in  the  European  Interoperability  Framework27,  which 
provides  an  approach  to  the  delivery  of  European  digital  public  services  commonly 
agreed by the Member States. Due care should also be taken that these specifications 
remain technology neutral and open to innovative technologies. 

(10)  This Regulation should establish the functional requirements applicable to information 
and  communication  technology  based  platforms  which  could  be  used  by  economic 
operators  to  make  available  the  regulatory  freight  transport  information  in  electronic 

27 

the 
European  Interoperability  Framework  –  Implementation  Strategy,  Communication  from 
Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee 
and the Committee of the Regions (COM(2017) 134).  

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15 

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format (eFTI) to the competent authorities (eFTI platforms). Conditions should also be 
established for third party eFTI platform services providers (eFTI services providers).  

(11)  To  build  the  confidence  of  both  the  Member  States  authorities  and  the  economic 
operators as regards the compliance of the eFTI platforms and eFTI services providers 
with those requirements, the Member States competent authorities should put in place 
a  certification  system  underpinned  by  accreditation  in  accordance  with  Regulation 
(EC) 765/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council28. 

(12) 

(13) 

(14) 

(15) 

In  order  to  ensure  uniform  conditions  for  the  implementation  of  the  obligation  to 
accept the regulatory information made available in electronic format pursuant to this 
Regulation,  implementing  powers  should  be  conferred  on  the  Commission.  Those 
powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the 
European Parliament and of the Council29. 

In  particular,  implementing  powers  should  be  conferred  on  the  Commission  to 
establish  a  common  data  set  and  subsets  in  relation  to  the  respective  regulatory 
information requirements covered by this Regulation, as well as common procedures 
and  detailed  rules  for  competent  authorities  for  the  access  to  and  processing  of  that 
information where the economic operators concerned make this information available 
electronically, including detailed rules and technical specifications.  

Implementing  powers  should  also  be  conferred  on  the  Commission  to  establish 
detailed  rules  for  the implementation  of  the  requirements  for  eFTI  platforms  and  for 
eFTI services providers.  

In order to ensure the proper application of this Regulation, the power to adopt acts in 
accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union 
should be delegated to the Commission:  

to  amend  Part  B  of  Annex  I,  in  order  to  incorporate  the  lists  of  regulatory 
- 
information requirements in Member States’ legislation notified to the Commission 
by the Member States in accordance with this Regulation; 

to  amend  Part  A  of  Annex  I  to  take  into  account  any  delegated  or 
- 
implementing  acts  adopted  by  the  Commission  which  establish  new  Union 
regulatory information requirements in relation to the transport of goods; 

to  amend  Part  B  of  Annex  I  to  incorporate  any  new  provision  of  relevant 
- 
national legislation which introduces changes to the national regulatory information 
requirements, or lays down new relevant regulatory information requirements falling 
under the scope of this Regulation notified to the Commission by the Member States 
in accordance with this Regulation; 

to  supplement  certain  technical  aspects  of  this  Regulation,  namely  as  regards 

- 
the rules for certification of eFTI platforms and eFTI services providers. 

(16) 

It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations 
during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be 
conducted  in  accordance  with  the  principles  laid  down  in  the  Interinstitutional 

28 

29 

Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 July 2008 setting out 
the  requirements  for  accreditation  and  market  surveillance  relating  to  the  marketing  of  products  and 
repealing Regulation (EEC) No 339/93 (OJ L 218 13.8.2008, p.30). 
Regulation  (EU)  No  182/2011  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  16  February  2011 
laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by the Member States 
of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13). 

EN 

16 

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Agreement  of  13  April  2016  on  Better  Law-Making30.  In  particular,  to  ensure  equal 
participation  in  the  preparation  of  delegated  acts,  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their 
experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing 
with the preparation of delegated acts. 

(17)  Since  the  objectives  of  this  Regulation,  namely  to  ensure  a  uniform  approach  to 
acceptance  by  Member  State  authorities  of  freight  transport  information  made 
available electronically, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can 
rather, by reason of the need to establish common requirements, be better achieved at 
Union  level,  the  Union  may  adopt  measures,  in  accordance  with  the  principle  of 
subsidiarity  as  set  out  in  Article  5  of  the  Treaty  on  European  Union.  In  accordance 
with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not 
go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives. 

(18)  Processing  by  electronic  means  of  personal  data  required  as  part  of  freight  transport 
regulatory  information  should  be  carried  out  in  accordance  with  Regulation  (EU) 
2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council31. 

(19)  The Commission should carry out an evaluation of this Regulation. Information should 
be  collected  in  order  to  inform  this  evaluation,  and  to  assess  the  performance  of  the 
legislation against the objectives it pursues.  

(20)  This Regulation cannot be effectively applied before the delegated and implementing 
acts provided for in it have entered into force. This Regulation should therefore apply 
with effect from [please insert the date], in order to give the Commission time to adopt 
those acts.  

(21)  The  European  Data  Protection  Supervisor  was  consulted  in  accordance  with  Article 
28(2) of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council32 
and delivered an opinion on xx XXX 20xx33, 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 

CHAPTER I 

GENERAL PROVISIONS 

Article 1 
Subject matter and scope 

1. 

30 
31 

32 

33 

This  Regulation  establishes  a  legal  framework  for  the  electronic  communication  of 
regulatory information related to the transport of goods on the territory of the Union. 
For that purpose, this Regulation: 

OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1 
Regulation  (EU)  2016/679  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  27  April  2016  on  the 
protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of 
such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) (OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, 
p. 1). 
Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on 
the  protection  of  individuals  with  regard  to  the  processing  of  personal  data  by  the  Community 
institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data (OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1). 
OJ C…. 

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(a) 

(b) 

2. 

3. 

lays  down  the  conditions  under  which  Member  States’  competent  authorities  are 
required  to  accept  regulatory  information  when  made  available  electronically  by 
economic operators concerned;  

lays  down  rules  for  the  provision  of  services  related  to  making  regulatory 
information available electronically by the economic operators concerned. 

This Regulation applies to regulatory information requirements set out in Union acts 
laying down the conditions for the transport of goods on the territory of the Union in 
accordance with Title VI of Part Three of the Treaty, or laying down the conditions 
for the shipments of waste. In respect of the shipment of waste, this Regulation does 
not  apply  to  controls  by  customs  offices,  as  provided  for  in  the  applicable  Union 
provisionss. The Union acts to which this Regulation applies and the corresponding 
regulatory information requirements are listed in part A of Annex I.  

This  Regulation  also  applies  to  regulatory  information  requirements  set  out  in 
Member States’ law dealing with matters governed by Title VI of Part Three of the 
Treaty and requiring the provision of information identical, in whole or in part, to the 
information to be provided pursuant to regulatory information requirements referred 
to in the first subparagraph.  

The  national  legislation  and  the  corresponding  regulatory  information  requirements 
referred  to  in  the  second  subparagraph  shall  be  listed  in  part  B  of  Annex  I,  in 
accordance with the procedure set out in Article 2(b). 

By [OP insert one year from the entry into force of this Regulation] at the latest, the 
Member States shall notify the Commission of the provisions of national legislation 
and  corresponding  regulatory  information  requirements  referred  to  in  the  second 
subparagraph  of  paragraph  2,  to  be  included  in  part  B  of  Annex  I.  The  Member 
States shall also notify the Commission of any new provision of national legislation 
subsequently  adopted,  covered  by  the  second  subparagraph  of  paragraph  2,  and 
which introduces changes to those regulatory information requirements or lays down 
new relevant regulatory information requirements, within a month from the adoption 
of such provision.  

Article 2 
Adaptation of Annex I 

The  Commission  is  empowered  to  adopt  delegated  acts  in  accordance  with  Article  13, 
concerning the amendment of Annex I in order to: 

(a) 

(b) 

include  a  reference  to  any  delegated  or  implementing  acts  adopted  by  the 
Commission, which establish new regulatory information requirements in relation to 
Union legal acts governing the transport of goods in accordance with Title VI of Part 
Three of the Treaty; 

incorporate 
requirements notified by Member States in accordance with Article 1(3).  

legislation  and 

to  national 

references 

regulatory 

information 

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply: 

Article 3 
Definitions 

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(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

(10) 

(11) 

(12) 

'regulatory information' means information, whether or not presented as a document, 
related to transport of cargo in the territory of the Union, including by way of transit, 
which is to be made available by an economic operator concerned in accordance with 
the  provisions  referred  to  in  Article  1(2)  in  order  to  prove  compliance  with  the 
relevant requirements of the acts concerned;  

'regulatory  information  requirement'  means  a  requirement  to  provide  regulatory 
information; 

'electronic  freight  transport  information'  (eFTI)  means  any  set  of  data  elements 
processed  on  electronic  support  for  purposes  of  exchanging  regulatory  information 
between  the  economic  operators  concerned  and  with  the  competent  public 
authorities; 

‘processing’ means any operation or set of operations performed on eFTI, whether or 
not  by  automated  means,  such  as  collection,  recording,  organisation,  structuring, 
storage,  adaptation  or  alteration,  retrieval,  consultation,  use,  disclosure  by 
transmission,  dissemination  or  otherwise  making  available,  alignment  or 
combination, restriction, erasure or destruction;  

‘eFTI platform’ means any information and communication technology (ICT) based 
solution,  such  as  an  operating  system,  an  operating  environment,  or  a  database, 
intended to be used for the processing of eFTI; 

‘eFTI platform developer’ means any natural or legal person which has developed or 
acquired  an  eFTI  platform  either  for  purposes  of  processing  of  regulatory 
information related to its own economic activity, or for putting that platform on the 
market;  

'eFTI  service'  means  a  service  consisting  of  eFTI  processing  by  means  of  an  eFTI 
platform,  alone  or  in  combination  with  other  ICT  solutions,  including  other  eFTI 
platforms;  

‘eFTI  service  provider’  means  any  natural  or  legal  person  which  provides  an  eFTI 
service to economic operators concerned on the basis of a contract; 

‘economic operator concerned’ means any transport or logistic operator, or any other 
natural  or  legal  person,  who  is  responsible  for  making  regulatory  information 
available  to  the  competent  authorities  in  accordance  with  the  relevant  regulatory 
information requirement; 

'human-readable format' means a way of representation of the data in electronic form 
that  can  be  used  as  information  by  a  natural  person  without  requiring  any  further 
processing;  

'machine-readable  format'  means  a  way  of  representation  of  the  data  in  electronic 
form that can be used for automatic processing by a machine;  

‘conformity  assessment  body’  means  a  conformity  assessment  body  within  the 
meaning  of  point  13  of  Article  2  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  765/2008,  which  is 
accredited in accordance with that Regulation to carry out conformity assessment of 
an eFTI platform or an eFTI service provider.  

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CHAPTER II 

REGULATORY INFORMATION MADE AVAILABLE ELECTRONICALLY 

Article 4 
Requirements for economic optiterators concerned 

1. 

Where  economic  operators  concerned  make  regulatory  information  available 
electronically,  they  shall  do  so  on  the  basis  of  data  processed  in  a  certified  eFTI 
platform  and,  if  applicable,  by  a  certified  eFTI  service  provider.  The  regulatory 
information shall be made available in machine-readable format and, at the request of 
the competent authority, in human-readable format.  

Information in machine-readable format shall be made available via an authenticated 
and  secure  connection  to  the  data  source  of  an  eFTI  platform.  Economic  operators 
concerned shall communicate the Internet address via which the information can be 
accessed, together with any other elements that are necessary to allow the competent 
authority to uniquely identify the regulatory information. 

Information  in  human-readable  format  shall  be  made  available  on  the  spot,  on  the 
screen  of  electronic  devices  owned  by  the  economic  operator  concerned  or  by  the 
competent authorities. 

2. 

The  Member  States  shall  take  measures  to  enable  their  competent  authorities  to 
process regulatory information made available by the economic operators concerned 
in machine-readable format pursuant to the second subparagraph of paragraph 1, in 
accordance with the provisions established by the Commission pursuant to Article 7.  

Article 5 
Acceptance by competent authorities  

Member  States’  competent  authorities  shall  accept  regulatory  information  made  available 
electronically by the economic operators concerned in accordance with Article 4. 

Article 6 
Confidential commercial information 

The  competent  authorities,  eFTI  services  providers  and  economic  operators  concerned  shall 
take measures to ensure confidentiality of commercial information processed and exchanged 
in accordance with this Regulation. 

Article 7 
Common eFTI data set, procedures and rules for access 

The Commission shall establish the following by means of implementing acts: 

(a) 

(b) 

a  common  eFTI  data  set  and  subsets  in  relation  to  the  respective  regulatory 
information requirements, including corresponding definitions for each data element 
included in the common data set and subsets; 

common  procedures  and  detailed  rules,  including  common  technical  specifications, 
for  competent  authorities'  access  to  eFTI  platforms,  including  procedures  for 

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processing of regulatory information made available electronically by the economic 
operators concerned. 

Those  implementing  acts  shall  be  adopted  in  accordance  with  the  examination  procedure 
referred to in Article 14(2). 

CHAPTER III 

EFTI PLATFORMS AND SERVICES 

SECTION 1 
REQUIREMENTS FOR EFTI PLATFORMS AND SERVICES 

Article 8 
Functional requirements for eFTI platforms 

1. 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

(h) 

2. 

The  eFTI  platforms  used  for  processing  regulatory  information  shall  provide 
functionalities that ensure that: 

personal data can be processed in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679; 

commercial data can be processed in accordance with Article 6; 

a  unique  electronic  identifying  link  can  be  established  between  the  data  processed 
and the physical shipment of a determined set of goods to which that data is related, 
from origin to destination, under the terms of a single transport contract, irrespective 
of the quantity or number of containers, packages, or pieces; 

data can be processed solely on the basis of authorised and authenticated access; 

all  processing  operations  are  duly  recorded  in  order  to  allow,  at  a  minimum,  the 
identification of each distinct operation, the natural or legal person having made the 
operation and the sequencing of the operations on each individual data element; if an 
operation  involves  modifying  or  erasing  an  existing  data  element,  the  original  data 
element shall be preserved; 

data  can  be  archived  and  remain  accessible  for  an  appropriate  period  of  time,  in 
accordance with the relevant regulatory information requirements; 

data is protected against corruption and theft; 

the  data  elements  processed  correspond  to  the  common  eFTI  data  set  and  subsets, 
and can be processed in any of the official languages of the Union. 

The  Commission  shall  adopt,  by  means  of  implementing  acts,  detailed  rules 
regarding the requirements laid down in paragraph 1. Those implementing acts shall 
be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 14(2).  

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1. 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

2. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

1. 

Article 9 
Requirements for eFTI service providers 

eFTI service providers shall ensure that: 

data is processed only by authorised users and according to clearly defined user role 
and  processing  rights  within  the  eFTI  platform,  in  accordance  with  the  relevant 
regulatory information requirements; 

data is stored and accessible for an appropriate period of time, in accordance with the 
relevant regulatory information requirements; 

authorities  have  immediate  access  to  regulatory  information  concerning  a  freight 
transport operation processed by means of their eFTI platforms, when this access is 
given to the authorities by an economic operator concerned; 

data is appropriately secured, including against unauthorised or unlawful processing 
and against accidental loss, destruction or damage. 

The  Commission  shall  adopt,  by  means  of  implementing  acts,  detailed  rules 
regarding the requirements laid down in paragraph 1. Those implementing acts shall 
be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 14(2). 

SECTION 3 
CERTIFICATION 

Article 10 
Conformity assessment bodies 

Conformity assessment bodies shall be accredited according to Regulation (EC) No 
765/2008  for  the  purposes  of  performing  the  certification  of  eFTI  platforms  and 
service providers as set out in Articles 11 and 12 of this Regulation.  

For  the  purposes  of  accreditation,  a  conformity  assessment  body  shall  meet  the 
requirements laid down in Annex II.  

Member  States  shall  maintain  an  updated  list  of  the  accredited  conformity 
assessment bodies, and of the eFTI platforms and eFTI service providers certified by 
those bodies in accordance with Articles 11 and 12. They shall make that list publicly 
available  on  an  official  government  Internet  website.  The  list  shall  be  regularly 
updated, and by the latest by 31 March each year. 

By 31 March each year, Member States shall submit the lists referred to in paragraph 
3 to the Commission, together with the address of the website where those lists have 
been published. The Commission shall publish a link to those website addresses on 
its official webpage. 

Article 11 
Certification of eFTI platforms  

Upon  request  of  an  eFTI  platform  developer  conformity  assessment  bodies  shall 
assess  the  compliance  of  the  eFTI  platform  with  the  requirements  laid  down  in 
Article 8(1). If the assessment is positive, a compliance certificate shall be issued. If 
the  assessment  is  negative,  the  compliance  assessment  body  shall  inform  the 
applicant why the platform does not comply with those requirements.  

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2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

Conformity  assessment  bodies  shall  maintain  an  up  to  date  list  of  certified  eFTI 
platforms and of those that received a negative assessment. The updated list shall be 
transmitted  to  the  competent  authorities  concerned  each  time  a  certificate  or  a 
negative assessment is issued.  

Information  made  available  to  competent  authorities  by  means  of  a  certified  eFTI 
platform shall be accompanied by a certification mark.  

The eFTI platform developer shall apply for a reassessment of its certification if the 
technical specifications adopted in the implementing acts referred to in Article 7(2) 
are revised. 

The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 13 
to  supplement  this  Regulation  with  rules  on  certification,  use  of  the  certification 
mark and renewal of the certification of eFTI platforms. 

Article 12 
Certification of eFTI service providers 

Upon request of an eFTI service provider, a conformity assessment body shall assess 
the  compliance  of  the  eFTI  service  provider  with  the  requirements  laid  down  in 
Article 9(1). If the assessment is positive, a compliance certificate shall be issued. If 
the  assessment  is  negative,  the  compliance  assessment  body  shall  inform  the 
applicant why the provider does not comply with those requirements.  

Conformity assessment bodies shall maintain an up to date list of the certified eFTI 
service providers and of those that received a negative assessment. The updated list 
shall be made available to the competent authorities concerned each time a certificate 
or a negative assessment is issued.  

The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 13 
to supplement this Regulation with rules on certification of eFTI service providers.  

CHAPTER IV 

DELEGATIONS OF POWER AND IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS 

Article 13 
Exercise of the delegation 

The  power  to  adopt  delegated  acts  is  conferred  on  the  Commission  subject  to  the 
conditions laid down in this Article. 

The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 2, Article 11(5) and Article 
12(3) shall be conferred on the Commission for an indeterminate period of time from 
[date of entry into force of this Regulation]. 

The delegation of power referred to in Article 2, Article 11(5), Article 12(3) may be 
revoked  at  any  time  by  the  European  Parliament  or  by  the  Council.  A  decision  to 
revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It 
shall  take  effect  the  day  following  the  publication  of  the  decision  in  the  Official 
Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect 
the validity of any delegated acts already in force. 

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4. 

5. 

6. 

Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by 
the 
in  accordance  with 
each  Member  State 
Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making of 13 April 2016. 

the  principles 

laid  down 

in 

As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to 
the European Parliament and to the Council. 

A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 2, Article 10(5) and Article 11(3) shall 
enter  into  force  only  if  no  objection  has  been  expressed  either  by  the  European 
Parliament or the Council within a period of two months of notification of that act to 
the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the 
European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they 
will not object. That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the 
European Parliament or of the Council. 

Article 14 
Committee procedure 

1. The  Commission  shall  be  assisted  by  a  committee.  That  committee  shall  be  a  committee 
within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. 

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall 
apply. 

CHAPTER V 

FINAL PROVISIONS 

Article 15 
Review  

1. 

2. 

By  [five  years  from  the  date  of  application  of  this  Regulation]  at  the  latest  the 
Commission shall carry out an evaluation of this Regulation and present a report on 
the  main  findings  to  the  European  Parliament,  the  Council  and  the  European 
Economic and Social Committee. 

Member States shall provide the Commission with the information necessary for the 
preparation of that Report. 

Article 16 
Monitoring 

The  Member  States  shall  provide  the  following  information  to  the  Commission  every  two 
years and for the first time by [two years from the date of application of this Regulation] at 
the latest:  

1. 

the  number  of  competent  authorities  which  have  implemented  measures  to  access 
and  process  information  made  available  by  economic  operators  concerned  in 
accordance with Article 4(2);  

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2. 

the  number  of  economic  operators  concerned  which  have  made  regulatory 
information  available  to  the  Member  State’s  competent  authorities  in  accordance 
with Article 4(1), broken down by transport mode.  

The information shall be provided for each year covered by the reporting period. 

Article 17 
Entry into force and application  

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in 
the Official Journal of the European Union. 

It shall apply from [OP insert four years from the entry into force]. 

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the European Parliament 

For the Council 

The President 

The President 

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