A Brazilian recruiter calls it a “Driver Auction”. Hauliers across Europe tell him how many truckers they expect to need over the coming year, and he looks for candidates in South America. Drivers arrive with seven personal documents, around €800 in cash, and, in many EU countries, a work permit linked to the employer who brought them in. If that job ends, the right to stay may depend on how quickly they can move to another employer under national rules.
Answers to Trans.INFO from two industry figures show how third-country recruitment into European road haulage works in practice. One recruiter is already placing Brazilian drivers with transport firms across the bloc. The other has built a more structured programme, but is still trying to sign up its first employer.
In both cases, the route begins in the driver’s country of origin but does not end with the driver entering an EU haulage job; recruiters say they continue to help drivers even after they start the job.
A ‘Driver Auction’ aimed at smaller hauliers
Marcelo Toledo, the owner of Brazilian recruitment firm M/Brazil, also known as Caterer Brazil, runs the Brazilian end of one of these channels. He says he matches drivers with transport companies in Lithuania, Poland, Austria, Latvia, Italy and Spain. Employers tell him how many drivers they expect to need over the coming year, and he starts looking for candidates. He calls it a “Driver Auction”, aimed in particular at smaller hauliers without the budget for large recruitment agencies.
Before departure, the driver is responsible for assembling seven personal documents:
- a passport,
- Brazilian driving licence,
- international driving licence,
- police clearance,
- driving licence extract,
- medical exams and reference letters.
In around 90% of cases, Toledo says, the employer covers the main relocation and entry costs — flight, hostel accommodation, Code 95 training and his agency fee. Some companies also cover meals. Drivers are still expected to arrive with around €800 in cash to cover personal expenses until their first salary.
Toledo says he has placed around 95 drivers over the past two years, mainly in Austria and Lithuania, with more due to arrive in Poland once visa procedures are completed. He puts current demand at 2,000 drivers this year, though he indicated that this figure reflects job requests and forms submitted by employers through his system rather than signed contracts alone.
The preparation he calls “Viking” training lasts around three months. He says it is designed to help South American drivers adjust to life in Europe, including distance from family, unfamiliar working environments and, in some cases, much colder climates than they are used to. Experienced Brazilian drivers already working in Europe act as tutors for new arrivals.
Toledo says he stays involved after the driver arrives. If a worker loses the job, he says he tries to arrange new interviews quickly so the driver does not have to return to Brazil. If a driver wants to leave a company voluntarily, he says he first tries to resolve the problem, but will look for a new placement if the driver insists. He also translates employment information into Portuguese before the contract is signed.
A more structured model, though without an employer yet
A different approach was described by James, founder of The One Driver, which presents itself as a more structured route for bringing non-EU drivers into Europe.
The programme has only just launched. It has no signed employer yet, but around 70 drivers are already waiting to take the course. In James’s model, the employer is expected to cover the main costs — flights, training, assessments and licensing — while the driver pays only permit costs. He estimates those at around €200 for Poland, around €800 for Spain, and roughly €600 on average, depending on destination.
The process starts with driver registration. Once an employer requests help, drivers are contacted about the opportunity and can decide whether to proceed. Training is delivered in the home country through a local partner and lasts four days: one day of classroom preparation followed by a three-day programme covering road awareness, hazard management, loading, fatigue, EU driving and rest rules, life and work in Europe, employer expectations, language basics, and permit issues.
Drivers also go through cognitive, knowledge and practical assessments.
Local partners help with permit applications. Drivers then travel to the EU, complete CPC training while employed, and move into full-time driving work.
James says employers in the programme must sign an agreement covering welfare responsibilities, and that companies with a poor record on treatment, pay, accommodation or compliance are meant to be excluded. Before working with an employer, he says his organisation seeks information from bodies including the ETF, ITF and Investigate Europe.
James says employers in his programme must guarantee accommodation outside the truck for the regular weekly rest period. Any employer unable to do so will not be accepted. Toledo said some of his newer client companies offer hotel accommodation for the regular weekly rest period.
The One Driver also aims to provide up to six months of independent social support after arrival, with issues raised through WhatsApp or email and then taken up with the employer. James also acknowledged a central difficulty that neither model removes: if a driver loses the job after arriving in Europe, the permit is often tied to that employer.
What the legal framework says
Regular weekly rest cannot be taken in the truck. Under EU road transport rules, regular weekly rest and any compensatory weekly rest over 45 hours cannot be taken in the vehicle. They must be taken in suitable accommodation with adequate sleeping and sanitary facilities, and the employer must cover the cost.
EU single-permit rules are changing, but national systems still matter. The European Commission says the revised Single Permit framework gives non-EU workers the right to change employer under certain conditions, and allows them to remain unemployed for at least three or six months — depending on the duration of their previous stay — during the validity of the permit.
The national permit regime can still be decisive. Lithuania’s official guidance states that if employment ends and the worker has not applied to change employers or job positions, they must leave the country. Once the residence permit is withdrawn, the worker has 14 days to leave. In some cases, the worker has three months to change employers before the permit is withdrawn.
The EU Talent Pool is not a work permit system. The European Parliament’s adopted text on the EU Talent Pool states that the platform should be free for third-country jobseekers and that participating employers or entities must not charge recruitment fees or any undisclosed costs through the platform. National immigration procedures for visas and residence permits continue to apply.
