The ban imposed by BALM runs from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027, the authority confirmed in response to a query from this publication.
The decision, published on 12 August, also provides details of the case. According to BALM, the ban is based on serious breaches committed between 2023 and 2025.
Before the ban was imposed, the company had been involved in 23 legally concluded penalty proceedings. The fines totalled more than €70,000, according to the authority. Despite those sanctions, BALM said, the company continued to breach the cabotage rules.
BALM has therefore barred the carrier from carrying out cabotage operations anywhere in Germany for 12 months.
The company has not been named
BALM has not disclosed which Polish transport company is affected by the one-year ban. In response to a query, a spokesperson said legal reasons prevented the authority from identifying the carrier by name.
The prohibition order is not yet legally final. The company can still challenge the decision through the available legal remedies.
Repeated breaches, rather than an isolated case, triggered the ban
The case is notable because BALM went beyond issuing penalties for individual violations.
According to the authority, repeated serious breaches of the cabotage rules were decisive. BALM said the earlier fines had not prevented further infringements.
BALM cites Section 3 of the Ordinance on Cross-Border Road Haulage and Cabotage, together with Article 13(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1072/2009, as the legal basis for the one-year ban.
The provision gives the authority a tool that goes beyond sanctioning individual violations: a foreign transport company can be temporarily excluded from Germany’s cabotage market after repeated serious breaches.
Cabotage remains legal—but only within clear limits
Cabotage is permitted in principle. Under EU rules, carriers from other EU Member States may take on domestic transport in Germany after completing an international journey, provided they meet the applicable requirements.
Violations can occur when a carrier exceeds the permitted number or sequence of cabotage operations, or when the required supporting documents are missing.
The Mobility Package also introduced a four-day waiting period for the same vehicle before it can carry out cabotage again in the same Member State.
For shippers, freight forwarders and carriers, checking that a Community licence is in place is not enough. The entire transport operation must comply with the cabotage rules, and the relevant documentation must demonstrate compliance during an inspection.
The consequences go beyond fines
BALM explicitly links the measure to fair competition in road freight transport and the consistent enforcement of rules against illegal cabotage.
The case shows transport companies that repeated violations do not necessarily end with individual fines. If a carrier continues to breach cabotage rules despite sanctions, the authority can temporarily bar it from the German cabotage market.
The operational impact is direct. For the duration of the ban, the company may no longer accept domestic cabotage work in Germany.
