National and regional railways

Only authorised vehicles can operate on the EU rail network. Authorisation is granted for a vehicle and/or a vehicle type (vehicle type authorisation) or for individual vehicles that correspond to an already approved vehicle type ('vehicle authorisation for placing on the market').

The vehicle type and/or vehicle authorisation is valid for a defined area of use, i.e. a network or networks in one or more Member States where the vehicle can be used. Any changes to the area of use (extension of the area of use) are subject to a further authorisation.

The approval is based on the assessment of the fulfilment of EU regulatory requirements, taking into account the applicable Technical Specifications for Interoperability (TSIs) and compliance with national legislation.

The applicant may be a railway undertaking, an infrastructure manager, a manufacturer, a vehicle owner or keeper or a person authorised by the latter on the basis of a power of attorney.

Applicants follow the procedure set out in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/545 of 4 April 2018 establishing practical arrangements for the railway vehicle authorisation and railway vehicle type authorisation process and the related ERA guidance, which provides information on the legislation, the application process and what is required from the applicant.

All applications for vehicle and/or vehicle type authorisation are submitted exclusively electronically via the One-Stop Shop (OSS) portal. This includes first authorisations of vehicles and/or vehicle types (in the case of a new design), modifications to already approved vehicles and vehicle types, extensions of the area of use, vehicles corresponding to an already approved type and renewed vehicle type authorisations. Applications and accompanying documentation must be submitted in the Czech language.

In the case of an application for the authorisation of vehicles and/or vehicle types intended for operation only on the territory of the Czech Republic, the applicant may choose either the Rail Authority or the European Union Agency for Railways as the assessing authority. In the case of vehicles and/or vehicle types operating in more than one Member State of the European Union, the European Union Agency for Railways is automatically the assessor of the application.

Applicants may also apply for pre-engagement, which is optional for applicants. The pre-engagement involves formal exchanges of information between the applicant, the authorising entity, affected non-state actors and other stakeholders prior to the actual submission of the application for authorisation. This allows the applicant to obtain the opinion of the authorising entity on the approach proposed by the applicant early in the process. Pre-engagement is also subject to the fees set out in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/764 as amended by Regulation 2021/1903 on fees and charges payable to the European Union Agency for Railways and must be performed exclusively via the One-Stop Shop.

Where the Rail Authority is the issuing authority, the authorisation of vehicles in conformity to an authorised vehicle type is subject to fixed rates depending on the vehicle type. The rates are regulated by Act No 634/2004 Coll., the Administrative Fees Act, item 59.

Where the ERA is the issuing authority, the fees are set at an hourly rate in accordance with Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/764 as amended by Regulation 2021/1903 on fees and charges payable to the European Union Agency for Railways and their conditions of payment.

In accordance with the provisions of Article 8(2) of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 2018/764 of 2 May 2018 on the fees and charges payable to the European Union Agency for Railways and their conditions of payment, a fee of EUR 103 is charged for each hour of work of a Rail Authority employee performing activities for the European Union Agency for Railways in respect of newly submitted applications with effect from 1 January 2024. Applications submitted before this date, which are already under assessment by the Rail Authority, will be charged at the original rate of EUR 40.02. The fee applies to the assessment of applications for vehicle authorisations for placing on the market, for vehicle type authorisations for placing on the market and applications for single safety certificates submitted by railway undertakings.

The conditions for conducting trial runs are specified in Section 49k of the Railways Act.

The Rail Authority will permit a trial run for a vehicle which has not yet been granted authorisation for placing on the market, provided that the safety of the operation of the infrastructure and rail transport is not endangered and if this is necessary for

• the EC verification of the rolling stock subsystem or on-board control-command and signalling subsystem of which the railway vehicle is composed, or
• a verification of the technical compatibility of the rolling stock subsystem and the on-board control-command and signalling subsystem of which the railway vehicle is composed, in accordance with the technical specification for interoperability or the implementing legislation; or
• a verification of the technical compatibility of the subsystem constituting the railway vehicle with the national or regional railway on which it is to be operated, in accordance with the directly applicable European Union regulation governing the common safety method, the technical specification for interoperability or the implementing legislation.

All decisions related to an application for a vehicle or vehicle type authorisation can be found in the One-Stop Shop (OSS). The applicant can only access information related to its own applications.

Once approved, information on the vehicle type is publicly available through the European Register of Authorised Types of Vehicles (ERATV).

Some of the documents forming part of the authorisation process are also publicly available through the European Railway Agency database of interoperability and safety (ERADIS).