- Trailer licensing
Trailers are registered with Motor Tax Offices and not with the Revenue Commissioners.
The Trailer/Semi-Trailer will be registered by Motor Tax Office and a Trailer/Semi-Trailer Licence (Trailer Card) will be issued.
Requirements for First Licensing / Registration of Heavy Goods Trailers
HGV operators should be aware that from 29th October 2012 onwards certain categories of Heavy Goods Trailers (i.e. Trailers with a Gross Design Weight (DGVW) in excess of 3500kg) must be accompanied by a Type Approval Certificate in order to be licensed for the first time in Ireland.
A Type Approval Certificate confirms that a trailer meets prescribed safety and environmental standards. The categories affected are as follows:-
- Trailers manufactured on or after 29th October 2012 in one single stage by a single manufacturer.
- Trailers manufactured on or after 29th October 2013 in more that one stage i.e. by more than one manufacturer. (Completed trailers)
- Special Purpose Trailers manufactured on or after 29th October 2014.
A type approval certificate will be supplied by the distributor / manufacturer when you purchase your Trailer and either EC or Irish Approval Certificates are acceptable.
In order to license any of the trailers in the above categories the trailer owner must present the following documentation to the Motor Tax Office, along with €60.00 registration fee:
1. Form TF100, which contains the details of the trailer owner and certain characteristics of the trailer (e.g. chassis number) and
2. Form TF300A (previously form TF300) which is a Weight Identification Certificate. This certificate should be completed and stamped by the manufacturer / assembler or his authorised agent. A copy of the Type Approval Certificate must be attached to this form.
Exemptions
Heavy Goods Trailers which are designed to be towed exclusively by agricultural tractors and trailers which are designed and constructed exclusively for use by the Defence Forces, Civil Defence, Garda Siochana or Fire Services are exempt from the requirement to have a Type Approval Certificate, regardless of their date of manufacture.
Imported Trailers
In order to license a trailer which was previously registered in another EU Member State, the same process as above applies. However, you will be required to supply evidence of previous registration or licensing in another Member State on your TF300A Form. Either a Registration Certificate from the relevant member State or a letter from the National Trailer Registration/Licensing Authority is acceptable.
For trailers that do not fall into the categories mentioned above, i.e. the following categories:
- Trailers manufactured prior to 29th October 2012
- Trailers completed in more than one stage prior to 29th October 2013
- Special purpose trailers manufactured prior to 29th October 2014
- Trailers which are designed to be towed exclusively by agricultural tractors and trailers which are designed and constructed exclusively for use by the Defence Forces, civil defence, Garda Siochana or fire services
A Type Approval Certificate is not required. However, it remains the legal responsibility of all vehicle owners to ensure that any vehicle used in a public place complies with the relevant Road Traffic legislation.
In order to register / license a trailer in these categories the trailer owner must present the following documentation to the Motor Tax Office, along with the €60.00 registration fee:
1. Form TF100 which contains the details of the trailer owner and certain characteristics of the trailer (e.g. chassis number) and
2. Form TF300B (previously TF300). This form must be completed by the manufacturer or where the manufacturer cannot be contacted the form must be completed by an Approved Test Centre (ATC) of the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). The details to be verified include the date of manufacture and the particular axle weights for the trailer. A full list of the ATCs is available on the NSAI website – www.nsai.ie
Note
All Trailers that have been registered for one year or more must hold a current Commercial Vehicle Roadworthiness Test (CVRT).
Registration of Trailers following BREXIT
EU standards
The EU type-approval system applies to EU Member States only. EU type-approval is recognised by the EU type approval number which begins with e11, e1 or e2. That’s typically followed by *2007/46/. The remaining characters can vary after that with 0083*00*00, *0322 or 0150*08.
Brexit and its affect
After 31st December 2020 (when the UK becomes a full “third” country) the UK-issued type-approval will no longer be recognised by EU Member States including Ireland and the EU type approval number will not automatically be available per a Cert of Conformity.
Therefore EU type-approval must be sought from a Member State’s type approval authority before they can introduce goods to the single market. Goods includes trailers.
So trailers with a UK type approval type only after 31 December 2020 will not be acceptable and will require EU type approval in order to be registered and entered into service in EU Member States. This is where the NSAI comes in.
IVA Cert
In the absence of a Cert of Conformity ( C. o. C), the NSAI can be contacted at 01/8073800 or info@nsai.ie to obtain an IVA cert (individual vehicle approval ). This will be acceptable as a replacement for the C. o C.
.