A vehicle is a device powered by an engine or in another way, designated for road traffic or driving on the road. A power-driven vehicle is a vehicle that is powered by an engine. Motor vehicles only intended for use by a person with reduced mobility, electric bicycles, self-balancing vehicles, mini mopeds, self-driving delivery robots, off-road vehicles, trams, and vehicles with a design speed of less than 6 kilometres per hour are not considered power-driven vehicles.
All procedures related to power-driven vehicles are performed by the Transport Administration. Detailed information on vehicle registration, pre-registration inspection, and technical inspection can be found on the website of the Transport Administration. You can also learn how to register changes to the vehicle or persons related to it, (temporarily) delete the vehicle from the register, replace the registration certificate and mark, and much more.
Procedures related to vehicles
Vehicle-related procedures can be performed conveniently and quickly in the Transport Administration’s e-service. When purchasing or selling a vehicle registered in Estonia, the change of ownership can be formalised without leaving home. The registration of a vehicle purchased from abroad goes more smoothly if you send the necessary documents to the Transport Administration for processing before submitting the vehicle for pre-registration inspection.
In the e-service, you can replace the registration certificate and registration marks, which can be sent by post to your home or to a parcel machine of your choice, respectively. You can also change, add, and delete users entered in the registration certificate, notify the Transport Administration about the sale of the vehicle, assign the vehicle for business trips, and more.
Vehicle registration
You can register as a vehicle owner in Estonia when:
- you have Estonian citizenship;
- you are a natural person with a residence permit or a right of residence in Estonia;
- you are a legal person registered in the Estonian business register;
- you are a foreign natural person (incl. e-resident) or a legal person who has an authorised representative with Estonian citizenship.
A state fee of EUR 130 must be paid to register a vehicle as well as a fee of EUR 62 to issue licence plates. Read more about state fees on the Transport Administration website.
In Estonia, a vehicle used on the road must be registered no later than 5 working days after the vehicle has been first driven. Driving an unregistered vehicle, or not re-registering your vehicle, can be punishable with a fine of up to 100 fine units, i.e. up to EUR 400.
Registration of a new vehicle purchased in Estonia
When purchasing a new vehicle in Estonia, an approved dealer arranges the entire registration process on behalf of the buyer and issues the vehicle registration certificate to the buyer.
Registration of a used vehicle purchased in Estonia
Vehicles registered in Estonia
All vehicles registered in Estonia have been issued an Estonian licence plate and registration certificate (this is also the easiest way to distinguish between vehicles registered in Estonia and those which are not). The change of ownership of a vehicle registered in Estonia can be formalised by the seller (provided there is authorisation from the buyer) or by the buyer themselves via e-service. If the buyer wishes to formalise the change of ownership in the Transport Administration service bureau, the vehicle’s valid registration certificate and a purchase and sale contract verifying the change of ownership must be submitted.
Vehicles not registered in Estonia
Firstly, it is important to know whether the vehicle has passed the pre-registration roadworthiness test. A certificate issued by the Transport Administration certifies that the inspection has been passed. Approved vehicle dealers carry out pre-registration roadworthiness test on behalf of their customers.
If there is a certificate, the seller can complete the registration with the authorisation of the buyer of the vehicle. It is also possible for buyers to do this themselves by submitting the following documents to the Transport Administration service bureau:
- the valid original registration certificate from the country of origin (both parts if the registration certificate consists of two parts);
- documents proving legal acquisition of the vehicle (e.g. a sales contract).
In the absence of a certificate, the steps required are similar to the registration of vehicles purchased abroad, which are described below.
Registration of a vehicle purchased abroad
Firstly, the following documents must be submitted to the Transport Administration via e-service (subsection ‘Pre-registration of vehicles’) or at the Transport Administration service bureau:
- the valid registration certificate from the country of origin (both parts if the registration certificate consists of two parts);
- documents proving legal acquisition of the vehicle (e.g. a sales contract);
- documents verifying customs clearance where a vehicle has been imported from outside the European Union;
- in the case of a new vehicle, a certificate of conformity (CoC);
- other relevant documentation issued by the manufacturer on the technical data of the vehicle which does not include the whole type approval of the vehicle;
- other documents required by legislation.
More information on vehicle registration and the required documents can be found on the website of the Transport Administration.
After submitting the documents, all vehicles imported from abroad must pass the pre-registration roadworthiness test. You must book an appointment for the pre-registration roadworthiness test via the Transport Administration’s booking system.
Selling a vehicle abroad
A vehicle is deleted from the traffic register when it is taken out of Estonia. A vehicle may be taken out in connection with the owner settling in another state or the transfer of the vehicle to another state.
If a vehicle is deleted from the register because its owner settled in another state or the vehicle is transferred to another state, the registration plate must be returned to the Transport Administration’s bureau.
The registration process and rules are established by the state where the vehicle is to be registered. However, by analogy with Estonia, the main documents required are the registration certificate and the correct acquisition documents.
If a vehicle is exported and registered in another Member State and the Member State gives notice of the registration of the vehicle, and if the vehicle had not been deleted when it was taken out of Estonia, the Transport Administration shall, based on the information received, delete the vehicle from the register.
Removal of a vehicle from the register
The Transport Administration shall remove a vehicle from the register:
- upon being taken out of Estonia if the owner settles in another state or if the vehicle is transferred to another state;
- vehicles of categories M1 and N1 on the basis of a certificate of destruction;
- at the end of the registration period for vehicles or trailers that have been registered temporarily;
- at the request of the owner, in the case of other vehicles or vintage vehicles;
- based on official information from a relevant authority of a Member State of the European Union regarding the registration of the vehicle in such Member State;
- based on a request of the Ministry of the Interior upon delivery of a vehicle to a museum or to an internal security training establishment as a training aid;
- based on a certificate of the Environmental Inspectorate, the Police and Border Guard Board or the Rescue Board, if a vehicle required to be scrapped has been destroyed and it cannot be promptly scrapped.
Read more about the removal of vehicle from the register on the website of the Transport Administration.
Roadworthiness test for motor vehicles
Motor vehicles subject to periodic inspection:
- passenger cars and vans (vehicles of categories M1, N1);
- heavy goods vehicles (vehicles of categories N2, N3);
- buses and coaches (vehicles of categories M2, M3);
- trailers (vehicles of categories O1, O2, O3, O4)
- motorcycles (vehicles of categories L3e, L4e, L5e, L7e);
- tractors, mobile machinery, and their trailers.
The following are not subject to periodic inspection:
- mopeds (vehicles of categories L1e, L2e);
- light four-wheeled vehicles (vehicles of category L6e);
- off-road vehicles, e.g. ATVs, snowmobiles (vehicles of categories MS1, MS2);
- agricultural mobile machinery (bearing the indication ‘agricultural mobile machinery’ on the registration certificate).
The owner of the vehicle or the authorised user shall ensure that the vehicle complies with the prescribed roadworthiness requirements.
More information on the terms of roadworthiness tests can be found on the website of the Transport Administration.
Sending digitally signed documents to the Transport Administration’s service bureaus
If it is not possible to perform the desired procedure via the e-service of the Transport Administration or it becomes necessary to send additional documents, all service bureaus of the Transport Administration recognise digitally signed documents. These are: traffic register templates to be filled in, letters of authorisation, applications, letters of explanation, etc. In order to send a digitally signed document to the Transport Administration, please download the relevant template (in Estonian) from the Transport Administration’s website, fill it in, sign it digitally, and send it to [email protected].
Customer support
If you have any questions, call to the customer support of the Transport Administration at (+372) 620 1200 or write an e-mail to [email protected]. You can also contact them using the form on the website of the Transport Administration.
Before calling the customer support line, check the answers to the questions most frequently asked by callers.
Military vehicles
If a vehicle that is designed for military use is brought to Estonia, then before bringing it over the state border of the Republic of Estonia, the Strategic Goods Commission must be consulted on whether the vehicle to be acquired is listed among military goods.
If the Strategic Goods Commission deems the vehicle to be military listed item, then a special authorisation / import licence for military goods (in case of transit through Estonia – a transit licence) must be applied for and received before the vehicle enters the territory of the Republic of Estonia. Upon registering such vehicles, the import licence for military goods must be presented in addition to other required documents.
You can read more about strategic goods on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
References
- Travelling on Estonian Roads as a Driver of Power-driven Vehicles
- Service bureaus of Transport Administration
- Strategic Export Control
- State fees for the activities of Transport Administration
Services
- Different queries from the motor insurance register
- Driving licence check
- E-services of the Transport Administration
- Reservation system of the Transport Administration
- The strategic goods information system Stratlink
- Vehicle history check