The eFTI Regulation ((EU) 2020/1056) is the EU's framework for paperless freight transport. The decisive date is 9 July 2027: from then on, authorities in all member states must accept regulatory transport information electronically when a company provides it via a certified eFTI platform.
What falls under it
The regulation covers regulatory information for road, rail, inland waterway and air transport: the consignment-note data behind the CMR, the ADR transport document for dangerous goods, cabotage evidence, waste-shipment documents. It does not invent new paperwork. It makes the existing data exchangeable in machine-readable form, shared with an inspector on request via a QR code or access link instead of a paper pouch in the cab.
The timeline
- Since January 2026, platforms and service providers can prepare for certification, and member state authorities may already accept eFTI data on a voluntary basis.
- The Commission plans to adopt the remaining implementing specifications in December 2026, including the technical requirements for IT systems and the certification rules.
- From 9 July 2027, acceptance becomes mandatory for authorities across the EU.
Voluntary for business — for now
No carrier or shipper is forced to go digital: paper remains legally valid, and the obligation rests on the authorities. In practice, expect the major transport platforms and instruments such as the eCMR protocol to converge on eFTI certification, so the data you already exchange digitally will count at a roadside check too.
What this means for you
Shippers and forwarders don't need to act tomorrow, but 2026 is the year to ask your TMS and document providers whether they will be eFTI-certified, and to stop building new processes around paper. Roadside checks with digital documents are faster and produce fewer disputes about missing papers — that alone tends to pay for the switch. How the regulation works and where it touches the eCMR is on our knowledge-base page: eFTI.
Source: European Commission — The eFTI Regulation · EUR-Lex — Regulation (EU) 2020/1056.