An operator's license, obtained from the Office of the Traffic Commissioner, grants businesses the authorization to operate heavy goods vehicles.  The Office of the Traffic Commissioner possesses extensive regulatory powers to oversee the use of these licenses.

There are three types of O licenses: 

• Restricted: Allows the operator to carry their own goods, but not goods for others for hire or reward
• Standard National: Allows the operator to carry their own goods, and goods for others for hire or reward, in Great Britain 
• Standard International: Allows the operator to carry their own goods, and goods for others for hire or reward, in Great Britain and on international journeys
• You need a standard international goods vehicle operator licence to use your vans or car and trailers over 2.5 tonnes to transport goods for hire or reward in the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.

In order to qualify for an Operator's Licence, whether it is a Standard or Restricted Licence, you must demonstrate to a traffic commissioner that you:

• Are of good repute and fit to hold a licence.
• Have appropriate financial standing, meaning you have enough money to run your business.
• Have suitable facilities or arrangements for maintaining your vehicles.
• Can ensure that both you and your staff obey all the rules.

For a Standard Licence, there are three additional requirements:

• The applicant must be properly established in Great Britain, which means having premises where the operator keeps their core business documents (e.g., personnel, driving, and vehicle maintenance records).  Therefore, a PO Box or third-party address cannot be used for correspondence on a standard license.
• Must have a transport manager who is of good repute and professionally competent.
• The licence holder must have "access" to a vehicle, meaning that the holder owns at least one vehicle or has in place a formal contract with a hire company, another operator, or another organization to hire one when needed.

Before starting the application process an operator will need to ensure that they can satisfy the following criteria and provide:

• Permission -  to use the place where the vehicle(s) are to be parked (the operating centre). Permission for this is required from the owner of the site. However, this is not required if the operator owns the land, although proof of ownership will be required.
• Maintenance Contract - this can be obtained from a reputable commercial vehicle service agent, who will know exactly what is required and will be able to advise on maintenance frequency and costs. If a maintenance contract from a garage is submitted, their services must be used.
• Certificate of Professional Competence - required if applying for a Standard National or Standard International Licence. An operator will need to either hold the relevant CPC qualification(s) or have someone working for them who has them, in which case, the following will be applicable:
  • For a National Licence - A National CPC
  • For an International Licence - A National and International CPC
• Whoever holds the CPC(s), will need to satisfy the Traffic Commissioner of good intent, and in the case of using an external source who holds the required CPC(s) to work upon the operator's behalf, that he/she can give the time required to efficiently and effectively perform the role of CPC holder - usually, a minimum of 8 hours per week per licence subject to the number of vehicles operated.
• Financial Information - proof to the Commissioner that there are sufficient financial resources to support the licence required, which will mean three months bank statements and proof of any further financial facility in place to support an ongoing Transport Operation. Recent audited accounts may also be required.
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To qualify for an Operator’s Licence, whether it is Standard or Restricted Licence, you must satisfy a traffic commissioner that you:

• The applicant must be properly established in Great Britain. “Established” in this context means have premises in which the operator keeps their core business documents (eg: personnel, driving and vehicle maintenance records). Therefore, a PO Box or third party address cannot be used for correspondence on a standard license.
• Must have a transport manager that is of good repute and professionally competent.
• The licence holder must have “access” to a vehicle. This means that the holder owns at least one vehicle or has in place a formal contract with a hire company, other operator or other organisation to hire one when needed.
• Are of good repute and fit to hold a licence.
• Have suitable facilities or arrangements for maintaining your vehicles.
• Are capable of ensuring that both you and your staff obey all the rules.

You could write to the Traffic Area Office giving reasons why you want to operate urgently. The Traffic Commissioner may issue an interim licence, but can only do so if you have applied for a full licence.

A fee will be charged for the issue of the interim licence and for each vehicle specified for use. When the fee is paid a vehicle identity disc will be sent to you for display on the windscreen.

An interim licence does not guarantee that you will get a full licence. Until you get a firm decision on that, you would be unwise to make any long term commitments.

The GV79 application fee, which is payable to the Traffic Commission, amounts to £257.

On top of that, there is a fee of £401 for the issuance of the license. Furthermore, you should budget for the expense of advertising the statutory public notice in your local newspaper, which can typically cost around £250, depending on the publication.

The O licence application for a Goods Vehicle Operators Licence can take up to 9 - 12 weeks. Although is exceptional cases it is possible to obtain an interim licence.

When applying for an operator’s licence, you will need to have at least one transport manager in addition to an operating center. Your transport manager can be internal or external:

Internal transport managers are likely to work directly for the operator as full-time or part-time employees, directors, or owners. They must also be residents in an EU country and effectively and continuously perform their transport manager role for the operator in question.

External transport managers can be employed outside of the operator. They must also be residents in an EU country, have a contract with the operator, and cannot work for more than four operators with a combined total fleet of 50 vehicles.

Yes, provided that the transport manager has an international CPC.