An operating licence must be applied for the following fields of activity:
- sales
- import
- export or
- storage services in the field of liquid fuel
In the meaning of the Liquid Fuel Act, liquid fuel means liquid flammable substance which can be used as the source of energy in heat engines and other energy conversion devices suitable for such purposes, or liquefied petroleum gas used in motor vehicles.
The specific list of the fuels requiring an operating licence (in Estonian).
Operating permit is not required in instances stipulated in section 13 (2) of the Liquid Fuel Act.
The operating licence is issued by the Tax and Customs Board for an indefinite period.
Legal bases
Sale, import, export and storage service of fuel are regulated by:
Requirements for applicants
Fuel may only be sold by undertakings who have presented to the Tax and Customs Board a security and whose share capital amounts to at least 31,950 euros or who have entered into a liability insurance contract which stipulates an insurance coverage of at least 31,950 euros reserved for compensating eventual proprietary damage caused to third parties as a result of the activities of the fuel undertaking. The above share capital or liability insurance requirement does not extend to undertakings who sell only liquefied petroleum gas.
Fuel, except for liquefied gas, may be imported by undertakings whose share capital is at least 639,115 euros. An operating licence is not required for the import of fuel if the fuel is transported to an excise warehouse or tax warehouse.
Fuel storage services may be provided by undertakings that hold a valid liability insurance contract with an amount of insurance coverage which ensures compensation for proprietary damage caused to third parties by the undertaking in the course of its activity as a provider of fuel storage services. The minimum amount of liability insurance coverage is 31,950 euros .
Undertakings whose share capital is at least 639, 115 euros may concurrently engage in the provision of fuel storage services and in the import of fuel.
In order to obtain an operating licence of a liquid fuel handler, a security which corresponds to the requirements stipulated in section 4'1-4'4 of the Liquid Fuel Act must be presented (determined by the Tax and Customs Board after the submission of the application for operating licence). The requirement of security does not apply when selling aviation fuel, liquefied gas or biogas.
The applicant for the operating licence shall not have been convicted of operating without authorisation in a field that was subject to an operating licence requirement and the respective data has not been deleted from the criminal records database.
Cross-border operation
If a foreign undertaking wishes to offer goods or services in Estonia on a regular basis under its name, the undertaking must register its branch in the Commercial Register. A foreign undertaking cannot apply for a fuel sales licence in the Register of Economic Activities; however, the branch of the undertaking registered in the Commercial Register can apply for the operating licence for sale of fuel according to the standard procedure.
In order to acquire a permit for sales of fuel, a foreign company shall enter a branch in the commercial register. (Commercial Code1 § 384 article 1).
Submission of an application
In order to obtain an operating licence, the undertaking must submit an application with the following information:
- Area or areas of activities (import, export, sales or storage services of fuel) where the undertaking would like to act
- Type of fuel, if the undertaking wishes to act in the area of the sale of fuel
- Information about the capacity of the storage tanks to be used, if the undertaking wishes to start providing fuel storage service
- Addresses of the sales points serving as the location of business, if the undertaking wishes to apply for an operating permit for the sale of fuel
The undertaking also needs to submit the following additional documents:
- Business plan
- Setting out the applicant’s estimated maximum monthly turnover from the sale of fuel, if the undertaking applies for an operating licence for the sale of fuel
- Copy of the liability insurance contract, if liability insurance is required
- Documents (copies) proving the conformance of the technical means and the personnel
- Previous month's income statement of the undertaking as of the last date of the previous month, if the undertaking applies for an operating licence for the sale of fuel
- Balance sheet of the undertaking as of the last date of the previous month, if the undertaking applies for an operating licence for the sale of fuel
- Bank statement of the undertaking for the current and the 3 months preceding the moment of submitting the application, if the undertaking applies for an operating licence for the sale of fuel
- Documents (copies) related to the investments made in fuel handling, if the undertaking applies for an operating licence for the sale of fuel
- If the undertaking wishes to reduce the security, the undertaking must submit a relevant request for this together with the application. The application for a reduction of the security can be requested by the person who has, for at least six months, operated on the basis of the basis of the authorization to sell fuel.
NB! The state fee must be paid before submitting the application.
The application can be submitted:
- by entering the Register of Economic Activities (authentication is required);
- via notary;
- by sending a digitally signed application to the email address [email protected];
- by submitting an application on paper to the nearest service bureau of the Tax and Customs Board.
Payment of the state fee
A state fee of 20 euros must be paid to the bank account of the Ministry of Finance by using the reference number 2900082236:
- SEB – EE891010220034796011
- Swedbank – EE932200221023778606
- Luminor Bank – EE701700017001577198
- LHV Pank - EE777700771003813400
Processing the application
An application for an activity licence is settled by granting or refusing to grant the activity licence within 30 days after the submission of the application. The period of settling an application begins when all the required data has been submitted. In the case of a complicated situation, the Tax and Customs Board may extend the period of processing an activity licence by 30 days.
In case of a properly presented application with correct data, the Tax and Customs Board determines the security for the applicant Within 10 business days starting from the day on which it received the application together with the documents and data annexed to it.
If the seller of fuel has applied for a reduction of security, the Tax and Customs Board determines the security for the applicant within 30 calendar days from the receipt of the application.
If the application for sales, import, export or storage service of fuel does not meet the requirements or if the Tax and Customs Board needs further information from the applicant to assess the grounds of the application, the term for considering the application shall commence on the day an application meeting the requirements is submitted or from the day that such further information is received.
The operating licence is granted after meeting the requirements provided in section 14 of the Liquid Fuel Act (including after presenting the proper security).
Amending the terms and conditions of the operating licence
If an undertaking wishes to amend its operating licence (e.g., changing, adding or deleting a place of business), an application for amending the information on the operating licence must be submitted:
- by entering the Register of Economic Activities (authentication is needed);
- via notary;
- by sending a digitally signed application to the email address [email protected];
- by submitting an application on paper to the nearest service bureau of the Tax and Customs Board.
Suspension of the operating licence and renouncement of economic activity
If the undertaking wishes to suspend or renounce its operating licence, a respective notice must be submitted:
- by entering the Register of Economic Activities (authentication is needed);
- via notary;
- by sending a digitally signed application to the email address [email protected];
- by submitting an application on paper to the nearest service bureau of the Tax and Customs Board.
Revoking of the activity licence
The operating licence will be revoked, if:
- When applying for the operating licence, the undertaking intentionally submitted false data which affected the issuing of the licence and which, if not submitted, would have caused the authority not to issue the licence.
- The undertaking renounces the economic activity.
- A prohibition on economic activities in the respective field imposed by a court judgment or pursuant to law is effective in respect of the undertaking, except a prohibition of economic activities is imposed based on the present law.
The operating licence may be revoked, if:
- The undertaking does not start or perform the economic activity within two years from the issuing of the operating licence; the undertaking holding a licence for the provision of service of general interest does not start or perform the economic activity within 12 months from the issuing of the operating licence or during the deadline determined by the ancillary conditions of the operating permit.
- The undertaking substantially violates the requirement belonging to the subject of review of the operating licence or the ancillary conditions of the operating licence.
- There will be substantial damage or hazard to public order, which did not exist or could not have been foreseen at the time of issuing the operating licence and which outweighs the interest of the undertaking to continue its activities, and which cannot be eliminated by amending the operating licence.
- The terms and conditions of the operating licence are changed.
- A notice on renouncement of the provision of service of general interest is submitted.
Supervision
State supervision is performed by the Tax and Customs Board.
Contact details
Substantive information
Tax and Customs Board, tel: +372 5696 2895, e-mail: [email protected]
Registry information and technical questions
Register of Economic Activities, tel: +372 668 7080, e-mail: [email protected]
Laws
- Alcohol, Tobacco, Fuel and Electricity Excise Duty Act
- Liquid Fuel Act
- General Part of the Economic Activities Code Act