Professional Driving Licence (Code 95)

"Ametikoolitus" course (Code 95), ADR

If you have a driving licence for a category C (lorry), CE (combination of vehicles), or D (bus), then this gives you the right to drive the vehicles but does not allow you to work as a professional driver. For the latter, you must pass another 140 hours of professional training in addition to a driving course. This includes both theory and practice. Among all else, the following topics are covered during the course:

• the rules for the working and rest time of a driver
• tachographs
• fastening cargo
• correct cargo documentation
• responsibility of the driver when transporting cargo
• transport supervision, police checks
• international transport
• occupational safety of drivers
• etc.

After completing the training, Code 95 is added to your driving licence, indicating your competence as a professional driver. In the future, you must complete professional trainings regularly, albeit on a smaller scale – 35 hours of further training every five years.

The Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR)

Once you have obtained code 95, you can take a separate ADR basic training course (18 hours) and pass the theory test at the Transport Administration to obtain a five-year ADR driver training certificate. This will allow you to transport dangerous goods. Thereafter, you will have to take regularly ADR continuous training courses, but they are shorter - a 9-hour continuous training course every 5 years.

Dangerous goods are classified as follows:

• Class 1. Explosive substances and articles.
• Class 2. Gases.
• Class 3. Flammable liquids.
• Class 4.1. Flammable solids, self-reactive substances and solid desensitized explosives.
• Class 4.2. Substances liable to spontaneous combustion.
• Class 4.3. Substances which, in contact with water, emit flammable gases.
• Class 5.1. Oxidizing substances.
• Class 5.2. Organic peroxides.
• Class 6.1. Toxic substances.
• Class 6.2. Infectious substances.
• Class 7. Radioactive material.
• Class 8. Corrosive substances.
• Class 9. Miscellaneous dangerous substances and articles.

For the carriage of Class 1 or Class 7 loads, passing a special 8-hour training course is required, followed by the corresponding 4-hour continuous ADR training course every next 5 years.

Drivers transporting dangerous goods in tank trucks with a capacity of more than 1 000 litres and tank containers with a capacity of more than 3 000 litres must additionally complete a special ADR tank truck training course (12 hours), followed by a 6-hour tank truck continuous training course every next 5 years.

ADR continuous training is available from 1 year before up to 2 years after the expiry of the current ADR driver certificate. If more than 2 years have passed, you will have to retake the basic training course.

More information about the ADR driver training certificate in available here.