International Movers – Some of the Required Licensing

Being a professional moving company which deals exclusively with international removals means International removal permitoperators must obtain certain permits and licensing in order to be able to provide such services. Most of the licensing, registration and insurance requirements are applicable to both man and van companies and removal companies working internationally. If a company is going to operate a cargo vehicle of gross tonnage over three and a half tonnes anywhere in the UK, or the rest of the EU, as well as the four country states of EFTA for the purpose of hire and transportation for profit, then the operator must obtain a valid SIOL. This stands for Standard International Operators License for road transportation. This is an essential piece of documentation and compulsory for any company.
Once the operator has applied and received their Operator License for the UK and EU, they can move onto applying for a community license. Such community licenses are required throughout most part of the EU for hire and reward, of cargo vehicles. Community licenses allow cargo drivers to use a single permit for trips between all EU member states, these licenses also allow for transit traffic in countries outside the European Union. If a company is going to be transporting dangerous goods across borders, although not many removal or man and van companies do this, the operator will be required to obtain an ADR.
ADR, or International Carriage of Dangerous Goods By Road, is the international licensing allowing companies to haul dangerous goods internationally. The list of dangerous goods is quite extensive and will surprise many people with some of the everyday goods and items which are classified as dangerous on the list, so obtaining an ADR is well worth it for most international movers. The above permits and licensing are required for the removal company as an operator, however drivers of trucks and vans hauling goods internationally are required to obtain personal licensing in the form of a Driver CPC, which stands for Certificate of Professional Competence. Each driver must hold a valid CPC at any time. A CPC can be obtained through acquiring or by taking an initial qualification test. In order for a CPC to be acquired, a driver must have clocked the necessary years or mileage of international experience without penalties. All drivers, regardless of their experience are required to take thirty five hours of periodic training every five years.