It will be possible to drive in Germany with "Ukrainian license plates" after April 1, but only with a special permit. However, such a special period is planned to be extended for only 6 months, and in the fall, re-registration for German license plates will become mandatory. This was announced by the Ambassador of Ukraine to Germany Oleksiy Makeev, reports UNN.
"You all know that under our agreement with Germany, until April 1, 2024, a special procedure for the use of cars with Ukrainian registration in Germany is in effect. "Ukrainian license plates". It would be more accurate to say that this procedure is in effect in 16 German federal states, as this decision is a matter of state, not federal, competence," Makeev said.
What happens next?
According to the ambassador, following our dialogue and requests, the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digitalization in March appealed to its colleagues in all German states to extend the special order for another 6 months. Some of the states have already reported a positive decision, while for some, the Easter holidays have crept up on them as insidiously and unexpectedly as winter on utilities. Therefore, we expect the relevant decisions next week. We assume that such a decision should be made by all Länder - otherwise we will work at the local level, because we have a German-wide recommendation. In this sense, we are thinking positive. Next week, together with the consuls general, we will congratulate the land ministries on the holidays and collect information from them.
What is a special order?
"Experience shows that this issue should be discussed separately. After all, many people perceive this order as "I can continue to drive with Ukrainian license plates, now and after April 1, I don't need to do anything." But this is not the case, and it was not the case before April 1. The special procedure is to give Ukrainian motorists (but only those who are in Germany under paragraph 24!) the choice between re-registering for German license plates and obtaining a special permit to use a car with Ukrainian license plates under a preferential procedure. If you do neither within a year of entry (which has already passed for the most part), you are actually violating German regulations," - Mr. Makeev wrote.
The ambassador urged to obtain a special permit. That is, having a compulsory motor vehicle liability insurance policy, undergo a simplified inspection (focus on the safety dimension), fill out a declaration that the car will not be in Germany permanently, and with these three documents obtain a permit from the registration authorities, which, along with the license and technical passport, must be carried in the car at all times.
Yes, it is mandatory. And if you haven't been fined for it yet, you should thank German solidarity, which is winning discipline here in a fantastic way. This will not always be the case", he added.
What happens after 6 months of extension?
According to the ambassador, there will be no more exceptions to the exceptions - we were informed by our German partners that no additional exceptions are possible.
"This week, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov and Federal Minister of Transport and Digitalization Volker Wissing had a conversation. They also talked about the future procedure. Re-registration for German license plates will become mandatory in the fall of 2024. This raises a number of questions: what to do with Ukrainian license plates (the German side would have to withdraw them), what to do with Ukrainian cars with German license plates in Ukraine, what happens to cars that fail to pass the required maintenance, and so on. Neither we nor the Germans have any answers yet, which is why we will soon start an intergovernmental dialogue involving all relevant institutions on both sides. After all, diplomats are anything but customs officers and technical inspection specialists (unless it's leopards, in which case I'm really almost an expert). Our goal is to get a clear and understandable mechanism that will take into account the legal restrictions in Germany and simplify some of the problems that our asylum seekers have," said Makeev.
He also assured that the German police would not take the cars away at night.
"Better go and get a special permit to use cars with Ukrainian license plates!" - the Ambassador summarized.