eFTI (Electronic Freight Transport Information) is a common European standard that enables carriers, forwarders and inspection authorities to exchange cargo information electronically. In practice, this means that paper CMR waybills, phytosanitary and veterinary certificates, and other documents presented during roadside checks will no longer be needed.
For companies carrying out transport within the European Union, this will open up the possibility of completely moving away from paper documentation and replacing it with digital versions. Carriers and forwarders will be able to integrate their order management systems with certified eFTI data platforms, and control authorities – after obtaining the truck’s registration number – will have access to the necessary information in real time.
Printing documents will become unnecessary. This will be an additional boost for transport and logistics companies to digitise the entire operational chain – from order acceptance through to delivery of the goods.
It is worth remembering, however, that in transport involving third countries, paper documents will remain in use for some time yet. A full move away from paper will therefore mainly apply to transport within the EU or operations that do not involve vehicles from outside the Community.
Once again about eFTI and eCMR
One point should be clearly distinguished: the eFTI Regulation does not introduce new obligations regarding data submission. Companies will still provide the same sets of information that have been used in the industry for more than 70 years. In road transport, the core document remains the CMR waybill, which accompanies every load.
Although many countries have ratified the eCMR convention – including, among others, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Belarus, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia and Latvia – practice often looks different.
In theory, inspections in these countries should accept electronic CMR documents. In reality, however, this does not always happen.
At present, only around 10% of European carriers choose to work exclusively with eCMR. Most use a dual model: the document is generated digitally, but its paper version still travels with the driver in the cab.
The reason is simple – institutional uncertainty. Not all inspectors or border service officers have the tools to actually verify documents in digital form. That is why, when passing through countries such as Latvia, Poland or Germany, a driver may still be asked to present a traditional paper CMR waybill.
For this reason, many companies are currently holding back on investments in fully automated eCMR modules – knowing that in practice they still have to maintain paper documentation anyway.
However, this situation will not last long. Once the eFTI Regulation is fully in force, inspection authorities across the EU will be required to accept digital versions of documents. When businesses gain confidence that electronic documents will be accepted without exception, a real transformation will begin.
There is also hard economics behind digitisation. According to industry calculations, handling a single document in digital form makes it possible to save around EUR 10. This amount includes printing costs, reduced demand for administrative work, and automated data management.
An average forwarding or transport company generates several thousand CMR waybills per year. If there are 1,000 of them, savings can reach around EUR 10,000 annually. These are real funds that can be allocated to further digitisation, implementing AI solutions, or improving service quality.
Digitising waybills is only the beginning
Although electronic waybills make it possible to eliminate paper CMRs, some logistics documents still exist only in analogue form. One of the most problematic areas is bilateral permits for trucks. Such permits still exist only as originals and are sent physically by post, with no digital alternative.
This means a slow process that is difficult to control: documents are delayed, get lost, and with limited oversight they can be used more times than the applicable limits allow. For carriers, this means additional bureaucracy, higher operational risk and real losses – for example, when a truck has to stop because one document is missing.
Europe is increasingly moving in the opposite direction, however. Türkiye, together with neighbouring countries, has already implemented a system for exchanging digital permits, and from 1 January 2026 all multilateral ETMK (eCMT) permits will operate in digital form.
This changes the existing operating model. Permits reach companies in real time, inspection authorities gain access to the full history of their use, and carriers avoid situations in which a journey is held up at the border due to a missing paper document.
Estonia shows the direction of digitisation
Estonia is one of the most advanced examples of how digitisation of the transport sector can be effectively supported at national level. The government there has already allocated several million euros to the implementation of eCMR and eFTI solutions.
Under the support programme, any transport or logistics company can receive up to EUR 15,000 in funding. The grant covers up to 90% of project costs – from purchasing an eCMR module, through its integration with transport order management systems, to employee training.
For small and medium-sized enterprises, this means the ability to implement a complete digital solution without having to make significant investments from their own funds.
Estonia’s experience shows that relatively small – measured in thousands of euros – grants can quickly break down entrenched technological barriers and genuinely accelerate the rollout of digital solutions in the day-to-day operations of transport and logistics companies. In cross-border operations, similar “data-first” compliance requirements are increasingly important for hauliers using systems like ICS2.
