International: Cambodia

At a glanceRequirements at a glance

International Road Transport Licence

Yes

Required where the mover operates its own vehicles across the border. The Law on Road Traffic requires a company providing domestic or international road transport of goods to hold a business licence from the MPWT. A Cambodian mover that drives its own trucks into a neighboring country therefore needs MPWT licensing that covers international transport, in addition to its domestic licence. The company that operates the trucks on the cross-border leg is the one that must hold it. Where the cross-border leg is subcontracted, the carrier’s own licensing covers the transport it performs.

Cross-Border Vehicle Permits

Required for each truck, where the mover operates its own vehicles across the border. Cambodian trucks may enter neighboring countries only under a road transport agreement, and each agreement issues permits per vehicle, usually within a fixed number of permits per country. The main arrangements are:

• Thailand: a bilateral memorandum of understanding on cross-border transport, with permits for named vehicles.
• Viet Nam: a bilateral road transport agreement and protocol, with permits valid for up to one year and stays of up to 30 days per trip.
• Lao PDR: a bilateral road transport agreement and protocol.
• Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam: a three-country memorandum of understanding on road transport.
• Greater Mekong Subregion: the GMS CBTA “Early Harvest” arrangement, under which each member country may issue up to 500 multiple-journey GMS road transport permits, with stays of up to 30 days in another member country. The current arrangement runs to 31 December 2026.
• ASEAN: the ASEAN Goods Vehicle Cross-Border Permit, issued in Cambodia by the MPWT to licensed transport operators for vehicles used under the ASEAN Customs Transit System. Applicants must show a vehicle inspection report and third-party liability insurance covering the permit period.

Thai-Cambodian Border Status

Available news reports indicate that Thailand has kept its land border crossings with Cambodia closed since June 2025, with cross-border trade by road largely halted. Check the current status before planning a road move between the two countries.

Multimodal Transport Operator Registration

None identified. Cambodia has ratified the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Multimodal Transport, which provides for national registers of multimodal transport operators, but no Cambodian registration scheme for multimodal transport operators was identified in this research. A multimodal transport operator is a company that contracts as principal to carry goods door to door using two or more modes of transport, such as truck and ship.

Freight Forwarding

Available sources indicate that freight forwarding (arranging transport on a customer’s behalf) does not need a specific licence in Cambodia beyond general business registration.

Foreign Ownership and International Moves

No foreign ownership limit specific to international road transport or freight services was identified. Cross-border permits are issued by each country for vehicles registered in that country, so a Cambodian permit applies only to a Cambodian-registered truck.

Insurance

Where the mover operates its own vehicles across the border, third-party liability insurance valid in each country the truck enters, as the cross-border permits require, in addition to the domestic insurance obligations. This covers harm to other people and property, not the goods being carried. No rule requiring movers to insure customers’ goods was identified, so customers should ask what protection, if any, is offered.

OverviewOverview & Scope

A household goods mover operating only within Cambodia needs the business and vehicle licences and other domestic requirements on the Cambodia page. International moves by sea or air from Cambodia are usually handled under the mover’s domestic registration, because Cambodia does not appear to require a separate multimodal transport operator or freight forwarder licence. Road moves across Cambodia’s land borders, to Thailand, Viet Nam, or Lao PDR, are different. They need MPWT licensing that covers international transport and a cross-border permit for each truck under the agreement that governs the route. Permit numbers are limited by those agreements. A mover that does not hold its own permits can subcontract the road leg to a carrier that does; the carrier’s own licences and permits then cover the transport it performs.

RegistrationRegistration & Compliance Essentials

Movers that carry goods across Cambodia’s land borders in their own trucks must:

1. Hold MPWT transport licensing that covers international transport.
2. Obtain a cross-border permit for each truck under the agreement that applies to the route (bilateral, three-country, GMS, or ASEAN).
3. Carry the documents the applicable agreement requires in each truck, including the permit, vehicle registration, technical inspection certificate, and insurance certificate.
4. Keep third-party liability insurance in force that is valid in every country the truck enters.
5. Maintain the domestic requirements on the Cambodia page (business registration, MPWT business and vehicle licences, registration, inspection, insurance and driver licences).

Movers that subcontract the cross-border road leg must:

6. Use carriers that hold the licences required for the transport they perform.

ChecklistCompliance checklist

Company licensing

• MPWT transport licensing that covers international road transportWhere applicable (mover operates its own vehicles across the border)Verified by DocumentRequired

Subcontracted transport

• Where transport is subcontracted, the mover uses carriers that hold the licences required for the transport they performWhere applicableVerified by AffirmationRequired

Vehicles and drivers (where the mover operates its own vehicles)

• Cross-border permit held for each truck under the applicable agreement (bilateral, three-country, GMS or ASEAN)Where applicable (mover operates its own vehicles across the border)Verified by DocumentRequired
• Third-party liability insurance valid in each country the truck entersWhere applicable (mover operates its own vehicles across the border)Verified by DocumentRequired
• Documents required by the applicable agreement (permit, registration, inspection certificate, insurance certificate) carried in each truck on cross-border tripsWhere applicable (mover operates its own vehicles across the border)Verified by AffirmationRequired