Business guidance

Transport & Logistics

Air transport: compliance checklist

Use this checklist to confirm your air transport business meets its obligations before you begin commercial operations. Work through the universal workplace and employment items every operator shares, then the aviation and spaceflight licensing items. If you answer no to any item, follow the linked guide before you proceed.

Transport & Logistics

Aviation cargo security compliance

How to become a Known Consignor or Regulated Agent for air cargo. Covers CAA certification, security vetting requirements, cargo screening, and dangerous goods training.

Transport & Logistics

Avoid overloading and secure your loads

How to comply with load security requirements and avoid overloading offences. Covers the DVSA code of practice, maximum weight limits, shared duty between operator, driver, and loader, and penalties for non-compliance.

Transport & Logistics

Clean Air Zones and emission requirements for goods vehicles

How Clean Air Zones affect goods vehicle operators. Covers the CAZ classification framework, current zones and charges by vehicle type, Euro emission standards, London LEZ/ULEZ/Congestion Charge, and options for managing compliance costs.

Transport & Logistics

Compliance for van and light goods vehicle operators

What applies when operating vans and light goods vehicles under 3.5 tonnes. Vans do not need an operator licence but must meet motor insurance, MOT, road tax, Clean Air Zone, driving licence, and loading requirements under the Road Traffic Act 1988.

Manufacturing & Engineering

Comply with UK Emissions Trading Scheme

How to meet your annual UK ETS compliance obligations if you operate a regulated installation, run aviation operations, or will be covered by maritime expansion from 2026. Covers the monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) cycle, surrendering allowances, and penalties for non-compliance.

Transport & Logistics

Crewing and seafarer certification

If you crew a ship and employ seafarers, your masters, officers and ratings must hold MCA certificates of competency to the STCW standard and a valid ENG1 medical fitness certificate, your ship must meet its safe-manning document, radio operators need GMDSS certification, and you must meet the seafarer-employment standards of the Maritime Labour Convention. This guide covers the crewing and certification regime, on top of the universal workplace duties in the spine guide.

Transport & Logistics

Driver CPC Requirements

Understand Driver Certificate of Professional Competence requirements for HGV and bus drivers, including the National and International Driver CPC types introduced in December 2024.

Transport & Logistics

DVSA Enforcement and Your Operator Compliance Risk Score

Understand how DVSA uses the Operator Compliance Risk Score to target enforcement, what Green, Amber and Red ratings mean for your business, and practical steps to improve your score through better compliance.

Retail & Consumer Goods

EV Charging Infrastructure

Install EV chargepoints and access government grants.

Transport & Logistics

Facing a Traffic Commissioner Public Inquiry

What triggers a Traffic Commissioner public inquiry, how to prepare your case, whether you need legal representation, what outcomes to expect, and how to give yourself the best chance of keeping your operator licence.

Transport & Logistics

Freight forwarding and customs: representation, warehousing and dangerous goods

If you forward freight, clear goods through customs on behalf of others, or run a bonded warehouse, you may act as a customs representative, hold customs warehousing authorisation from HMRC, and — if you move dangerous goods — appoint a dangerous goods safety adviser. This guide covers the customs and dangerous-goods regimes specific to freight forwarding, on top of the universal warehouse duties in the spine guide.

Transport & Logistics

Get an operator's licence for goods vehicles

How to apply for an O-licence to operate goods vehicles for business. Covers Standard and Restricted licences, fees, financial standing, transport manager and operating centre requirements, the application process, and what the Traffic Commissioner can do if you fall short.

Transport & Logistics

Get your aviation and spaceflight licences and certificates

Air transport is one of the most heavily licensed sectors in the UK. This guide takes you through operating licences, air operator certificates, airworthiness and crew licensing, ATOL protection, passenger rights, dangerous goods by air, and — if you conduct spaceflight — operator licences, spaceport licences and third-party liability insurance. The Civil Aviation Authority regulates all of it UK-wide.

Transport & Logistics

Goods Vehicle Operator Compliance Checklist

A yes/no audit checklist covering all key goods vehicle operator obligations including O-licence conditions, vehicle maintenance, drivers, tachographs, and load compliance.

Transport & Logistics

Insurance for goods vehicle operators

What insurance goods vehicle operators need. Covers mandatory motor fleet insurance under the Road Traffic Act 1988, goods in transit cover, CMR liability for international carriage, and when to move from individual policies to a fleet policy.

Transport & Logistics

International Road Haulage Permits and Cabotage

How to comply with post-Brexit international haulage rules including TCA permit-free access, ECMT permits for non-EU countries, cabotage and cross-trade limits, and the documentation you must carry on every international journey.

Transport & Logistics

Land transport compliance checklist

A checklist for land transport businesses — road haulage, bus and coach, taxi and private hire, rail, and pipelines. Section 1 applies to every operator; the remaining sections are conditional — work through only the one(s) that match your operation.

Transport & Logistics

Meet your postal and courier regulatory duties

Postal and courier operators in Great Britain may need a goods vehicle operator's licence if they use vehicles over 3.5 tonnes, and must understand the Ofcom postal authorisation framework. This guide covers both activity-specific regulatory duties.

Technology & Digital

Network and Information Systems (NIS) Regulations

The NIS Regulations 2018 (as amended in 2022) require operators of essential services and relevant digital service providers to implement appropriate security measures, report significant incidents within 72 hours, and cooperate with sector-specific competent authorities. The Cyber Security and Resilience Bill (introduced November 2025) will further expand scope to managed service providers, data centres, and critical suppliers.

Transport & Logistics

Operate a pipeline: safety and environmental duties

If you transport products by pipeline, you must notify the HSE before construction, run a written safety management system, and — if you handle hazardous substances above the thresholds — meet the COMAH major-accident regime. Discharges and emissions from pipeline operations also need an environmental permit. This guide covers the pipeline-specific regimes on top of the universal workplace duties in the spine guide.

Transport & Logistics

Postal and courier compliance checklist

Use this checklist to confirm you have met every regulatory obligation that applies to your postal or courier operation — from workplace health and safety through to goods vehicle operator licensing and Ofcom postal authorisation.

Transport & Logistics

Register and operate a sea-going ship

If you operate sea-going passenger or cargo ships on coastal or international voyages, you must register the ship on the UK Ship Register, have it surveyed and certified by the MCA, operate a safety management system under the ISM Code, mark a load line, and meet the dangerous-goods, security and environmental regimes. This guide covers the regimes specific to sea-going ships, on top of the universal workplace duties in the spine guide. Crewing and seafarer certification are covered separately.

Transport & Logistics

Run a bus or coach business: licensing and compliance

If you run local bus services, scheduled routes or coach and charter operations, you need a public service vehicle (PSV) operator licence from the Traffic Commissioner, your drivers need the Driver CPC, your vehicles must meet accessibility standards, and local bus services must be registered. This guide covers the regimes specific to passenger road transport, on top of the universal workplace duties in the spine guide.

Transport & Logistics

Run a rail operation: licensing and safety

If you operate passenger or freight trains, or use the rail network, you need a licence and safety certificate or authorisation from the Office of Rail and Road, an approved track access agreement, and — if you carry dangerous goods — RID compliance. This guide covers the rail-specific regimes on top of the universal workplace duties in the spine guide.

Transport & Logistics

Run a taxi or private hire business: licensing and compliance

If you run a taxi (hackney carriage) or private hire (minicab) business, your vehicles, drivers and — for private hire — your booking operation must be licensed by the local council, which sets its own conditions, fees and vehicle standards. Drivers need an enhanced DBS check and must pass a fit and proper person test. This guide covers the taxi and private hire regime on top of the universal workplace duties in the spine guide.

Transport & Logistics

Run passenger or freight services on inland and categorised waters

If you run trip boats, passenger launches, ferries or freight barges on canals, rivers, estuaries and harbours, you need a licence from the relevant navigation authority and a Boat Safety Scheme certificate, your vessel must meet the inland-waterway technical standards, passenger services need a domestic safety-management or categorised-waters passenger certificate, and the person in charge needs a boatmaster's licence. This guide covers the inland and categorised-waters regime, on top of the universal workplace duties in the spine guide.

Transport & Logistics

Set up and run a safe air transport operation

Air transport operations expose your people to aircraft-handling risks, fuel, noise, working at height on and around aircraft, and manual handling of cargo and baggage. Whatever you carry, this is the universal spine. It takes you through your core workplace health and safety duties, the sector-specific hazards, fire safety, employers' liability insurance, equality and data protection.

Transport & Logistics

Set up and run a safe land transport operation

Whatever you move and however you move it — goods by road, passengers by bus, coach or taxi, freight or passengers by rail, or products by pipeline — you must manage the same workplace health and safety, accident reporting, insurance, equality and data protection duties before you begin operating. This guide covers the duties every land transport business shares; your licensing and certification regime is covered in the guide for your kind of operation.

Transport & Logistics

Set up and run a safe postal and courier operation

Every postal or courier operation must meet universal workplace duties before it tackles the activity-specific licensing and authorisation regimes. This guide covers the five foundational obligations — health and safety, fire safety, employers' liability insurance, equality and data protection.

Transport & Logistics

Set up and run a safe warehousing and storage operation

Whatever you store and however you handle it — pallets in a distribution centre, chilled and frozen goods in a cold store, or hazardous goods in a bonded warehouse — you must manage the same workplace health and safety, fire, lifting and work equipment, manual handling, dangerous-substance, insurance, equality and data protection duties before you begin operating. This guide covers the duties every warehousing and transport-support business shares; your customs and mode-specific regime is covered in the guide for your kind of operation.

Transport & Logistics

Set up and run a safe water transport operation

Whatever you operate and however you operate it — sea-going passenger or cargo ships, canal and river trip boats, ferries on categorised waters, or freight on inland waterways — you must manage the same workplace health and safety, accident reporting, insurance, equality and data protection duties before you begin operating. This guide covers the duties every water transport business shares; your registration, certification and licensing regime is covered in the guide for your kind of operation.

Transport & Logistics

Smart tachograph requirements and transition

Smart tachograph v2 requirements, the transition from analogue and digital units, retrofit deadlines for international and domestic vehicles, and how UK requirements have diverged from EU rules since Brexit.

Transport & Logistics

Support activities for transport: ports, airports and rail

If you handle cargo or run support services at a port, airport or rail terminal — stevedoring, ground handling, terminal operations — the duties depend on the mode you support. Harbour authority duties and port security apply at ports, aviation security and economic regulation at airports, and the rail safety regime at rail terminals and stations. This guide covers the mode-support regimes, on top of the universal warehouse duties in the spine guide. Answer only the section for the mode(s) you support.

Transport & Logistics

Tachographs and Drivers' Hours

Understand tachograph requirements and drivers' hours rules for goods vehicle operations.

Transport & Logistics

Transporting Dangerous Goods (ADR)

Comply with ADR regulations for transporting dangerous goods by road.

Manufacturing & Engineering

UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS) compliance

Complete guide to UK ETS obligations for installations, aviation operators, and maritime operators. Covers registration thresholds, annual reporting deadlines, verification requirements, allowance surrender, and penalties.

Transport & Logistics

UK Space Industry Licensing

Obtain licences for satellite operations, launches, and space activities.

Transport & Logistics

Vehicle excise duty and HGV Levy for goods vehicles

Current VED rates for heavy goods vehicles by weight band and axle configuration, and the status of the HGV Road User Levy.

Transport & Logistics

Vehicle Maintenance and MOT

Understand vehicle maintenance standards and MOT requirements for goods vehicles.

Transport & Logistics

Warehousing and transport support compliance checklist

A checklist for warehousing and transport-support businesses — storage and cold stores, freight forwarding and customs, and cargo handling at ports, airports and rail. Section 1 applies to every operator; the remaining sections are conditional — work through only the one(s) that match your operation.

Transport & Logistics

Water transport compliance checklist

A checklist for water transport businesses — sea-going passenger and cargo ships, crewing and seafarer certification, and inland and categorised-waters vessels. Section 1 applies to every operator; the remaining sections are conditional — work through only the one(s) that match your operation.

Transport & Logistics

Which air transport regulations apply to your business

Running an air transport business — passenger airline, cargo carrier or spaceflight operator — carries a heavy, sector-specific licensing load on top of the usual workplace duties: operating licences, air operator certificates, airworthiness, crew licensing, ATOL protection, passenger rights, dangerous goods and spaceflight licences.

Transport & Logistics

Which land transport rules apply to your business

Land transport covers very different businesses — road haulage, bus and coach, taxi and private hire, rail, and pipelines — each with its own regulator and licensing regime, on top of the workplace duties they all share. Work out which description fits your business and follow the right guide.

Transport & Logistics

Which postal and courier rules apply to you

If you operate or plan to operate a postal or courier business in Great Britain, you must comply with workplace health and safety, fire safety, insurance, equality and data protection duties that bind every employer — plus activity-specific requirements for goods vehicle licensing and postal operator authorisation. This guide introduces the rules and routes you to the detail.

Transport & Logistics

Which warehousing and transport support rules apply to your business

Warehousing and transport support cover two related kinds of business — storing goods (warehousing, cold storage, fulfilment) and the support activities that keep transport moving (freight forwarding and customs, cargo handling at ports, airports and rail terminals). Each has its own regulator and regime, on top of the workplace duties they all share. Work out which description fits your business and follow the right guide.

Transport & Logistics

Which water transport rules apply to your business

Water transport spans very different businesses — sea-going passenger and cargo ships, canal and river trip boats and ferries on inland and categorised waters, and the freight that moves on them — each with its own certification regime, on top of the workplace duties they all share. Work out which description fits your business and follow the right guide.

Tax & Finance

Check if you need to register for VAT

Find out if your business must register for VAT based on your taxable turnover. Covers the £90,000 threshold, what counts as taxable turnover, the rolling 12-month test, and when voluntary registration makes sense.

Business Structure

Mandatory registrations every business must complete

Step-by-step guide to the registrations every business must complete before trading, regardless of sector. Covers HMRC tax registration, ICO data protection fee, mandatory insurance, and pension auto-enrolment.

Premises & Operations

Meet your business waste duty of care

Understand your legal responsibilities when producing, storing, or disposing of business waste. Covers using registered waste carriers, completing waste transfer notes, and the stricter rules for hazardous waste.

Compliance & Legal

Pre-trading compliance checklist

A concise yes/no checklist to verify you have completed all mandatory pre-trading requirements, including business registration, tax, insurance, licences, premises approvals, and data protection.