Individual approval refers to a process where an approval authority verifies that an individual, new category M, N or O vehicle conforms to requirements. Individual approval may be applied for by the vehicle owner, manufacturer, importer or a representative of the manufacturer.
Individual approval is divided into national and EU approval. A vehicle that has been individually approved nationally may be taken into use/registered only in Finland without verification from another member state. A vehicle with individual EU approval may be taken into use/registered in any EU member state.
Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom acts as the approval authority in Finland and manages the organisation of national individual approval of vehicles as well as the granting of EU individual approvals. Traficom has arranged the granting of national individual approvals through acquiring the necessary services from contract partners.
National or EU individual approval?
Vehicles registered in Finland are usually subjected to national individual approval. National individual approval is valid in Finland, but it may also be recognised in other member states if the approval corresponds to the national requirements of the country in question.
Vehicles may be subjected to EU individual approval as an alternative to national individual approval. EU member states must approve EU individual approval without special recognition procedures. There are no national exemptions from EU individual approval, and the process is thus often more complex and expensive in terms of both the approval and the necessary reports.
National individual approval may be granted to all category M, N and O vehicles. EU individual approval may only be granted to category M1 and N1 vehicles and special purpose vehicles.
National individual approval may employ national alternative requirements for the manner in which the conformity with requirements is demonstrated in accordance with appendix 1 of the Technical Requirements for Cars and their Trailers issued by Traficom. The reports required for EU individual approval correspond to the reports required for EU type-approval. This results in the fact that reports drafted by recognised experts cannot be used as part of conformity verification in EU individual approvals. Instead, the reports must be issued by a designated technical service.