International: Morocco

At a glanceRequirements at a glance

International Road Freight Carrier Registration

Yes

Required where the mover operates its own trucks across the border. Decree 2-03-169 keeps a separate register for carriers that transport goods for hire internationally, alongside the national register. A Moroccan company that drives household goods across a border, including by truck on a ferry to Europe, needs entry in this register. The conditions are the same three as for domestic carriers: good repute, financial capacity, and professional competence.

Transport Commission Agent Registration

Required where applicable. The register for transport commission agents (commissionnaires de transport) covers both national and international activity. A mover that organizes international moves in its own name and responsibility but has the road legs performed by other carriers falls into this category. Commission agents must hold equity capital and liability insurance covering the activity.

Bilateral Road Transport Authorizations

Required where the mover operates its own trucks across the border. Morocco is not part of the multilateral quota of the International Transport Forum (ECMT licences), so international road transport to and from Morocco runs under bilateral agreements. Under the agreement between Spain and Morocco, for example, all international road transport of goods between the two countries needs prior authorization, issued by the country where the truck is registered. Each authorization covers one vehicle and cannot be transferred. Removals carried out by specialist firms receive authorizations outside the annual quota, but still need an authorization. France also exchanges road transport authorizations with Morocco under a bilateral agreement of 13 February 1974. Where a mover subcontracts the road leg, the authorization attaches to the carrier’s truck, and the carrier’s own registration and authorizations cover the transport it performs.

No Domestic Moves by Foreign Trucks

A truck registered in one country may not carry goods between two points inside the other country (cabotage) under the Spain-Morocco agreement. Available sources indicate that Moroccan rules prohibit domestic transport by any foreign-registered vehicle.

International Conventions

Morocco is a party to the CMR Convention (the international convention on the contract for the carriage of goods by road), but the CMR does not apply to furniture removals, so it does not set the liability for an international household move by road. Customs transit arrangements are covered in Country Guides.

Insurance

A registered commission agent must maintain the liability insurance its registration requires. The domestic compulsory motor insurance applies to the mover’s own trucks, and trucks driven abroad are expected to carry motor insurance valid in each country crossed. Motor insurance does not cover the household goods; customers should ask what protection, if any, the mover offers.

OverviewOverview & Scope

A household goods mover operating only within Morocco needs the registration and other domestic requirements on the Morocco page. International moves add two requirements for a mover that drives across borders. First, the company must be entered in the separate register for international carriers, not only the national one. Second, every cross-border road trip needs a bilateral authorization under Morocco’s agreement with the destination or transit country, because Morocco does not take part in the European multilateral licence quota. Most road moves between Morocco and Europe cross by ferry, so the agreements with Spain, France, and other European states are the relevant ones. A mover that books international moves in its own name but uses other carriers for the road legs needs registration as a transport commission agent, and should use carriers that hold the registrations and authorizations the transport requires. A mover that ships household goods only by sea or air container, with no international road leg in its own trucks, needs neither the international carrier register nor bilateral authorizations, although its domestic collection and delivery remain subject to the domestic rules. No separate registration for multimodal transport operators was found in Moroccan law.

RegistrationRegistration & Compliance Essentials

Movers that drive international road legs with their own trucks must:

1. Register in the international road freight carrier register, meeting the good repute, financial capacity, and professional competence conditions.
2. Obtain a bilateral road transport authorization for each truck and trip under the agreement with the destination or transit country.
3. Not carry domestic loads inside another country with a truck registered elsewhere.

Movers that organize international transport performed by other carriers in their own name must:

4. Register as a transport commission agent and hold the liability insurance that registration requires.
5. Use carriers that hold the licences required for the transport they perform.

ChecklistCompliance checklist

Company licensing

• Entry in the international road freight carrier registerWhere applicable (mover drives international road legs with its own trucks)Verified by DocumentRequired
• Entry in the transport commission agent registerWhere applicable (mover organizes international transport in its own name that other carriers perform)Verified by DocumentRequired
• Liability insurance covering the commission agent activityWhere applicable (mover is registered as a transport commission agent)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)

• Bilateral road transport authorization held for each truck and cross-border tripWhere applicable (mover operates its own trucks across the border)Verified by DocumentRequired
• No cabotage inside another country with a truck registered elsewhereWhere applicable (mover operates its own trucks across the border)Verified by AffirmationRequired