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PTV GROUP

September 2013

FRENCH ECOTAXE

- EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

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AGENDA

1. What is ecotaxe?

2. Who is affected?

3. How does it work?

4. How is it calculated?

5. When will it be introduced?

6. How will it be controlled?

7. What should I do to be prepared?

8. Contact

PTV GROUP

September 2013

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1. WHAT IS ECOTAXE?

Objectives

The aim of the ecotaxe is to impose a levy on the use of free national roads as well as

certain sections of secondary, local roads.

The tax depends on the number of kilometres travelled and will be levied according to

the use of the roads with the following three objectives:

Reduce the impact of road freight transport on the environment

Increase the attractiveness of a move to other means of transport

Maintain the roads and finance intermodality

Basis

It is based on a decision by the "Grenelle de l'environnement" and is enshrined in law

"Loi Grenelle I" dated 3 August 2009.

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1. WHAT IS ECOTAXE?

Proceeds

The proceeds from the ecotaxe will amount to approx. 1.2 billion euros per annum and

will be distributed as follows:

65 % to the state for the benefit of the

infrastructure authority "Agence de Financement des Infrastructures de

Transport en France" (AFITF)

20% for the levy charges (implemented by

Ecomouv)

15 % to local authorities

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2. WHO IS AFFECTED?

The ecotaxe consists of two key parts:

The levy, i.e. the relationship between the transport service provider and the state

The "passing on", i.e. the relationship between the transport service provider and

the forwarder.

Transport

service

provider

State Forwarder

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2. WHO IS AFFECTED?

The calculation of the ecotaxe impacts on the relationship between the transport

service provider and the state.

The amount is proportional to the use of the taxed traffic network. The state has

outsourced administrative and levying activities to the Ecomouv'-Konsortium.

Transport service providers include all French and foreign road freight vehicles over 3.5

T that are driving on their own behalf or on behalf of a third party. This includes semi-

trailer tractors (Tracteurs routiers, TRR), N2 or N3 and lorries (Camions, CAM), N2 or

N3. Special (VASP) or mixed-use vehicles (VASP+CAM), government road maintenance

vehicles and milk tankers are excluded. Military, emergency services and agricultural

vehicles are also exempt.

Transport

service

provider

State Forwarder

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The "passing on" of the ecotaxe impacts the relationship between the transport

service provider and the client.

The principle of passing on costs is enshrined in law. This specifies that the transport

service provider must pass the tax on to the parties that benefit from the transport of the

goods. This should motivate the forwarder to optimise their transport and use other

modes of transportation besides road freight.

2. WHO IS AFFECTED?

Transport

service

provider

State Forwarder

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The amount of the charges that are passed on is based on a flat-rate intra- and inter-

regional percentage specified in the legislation (April 2013) which is added to the

transport service amount:

4.8 % for all inter-regional trips;

between 1.80% and 6.30% for the 21 regions excluding Corsica

This surcharge must be listed

separately in the invoices that the

transport service provider issues to their

client.

2. WHO IS AFFECTED?

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The taxed road network(1) consists of two types of roads and covers a total of over

15,000 km, which is broken down as follows:

About 10,000 km of free motorways and

national roads (except for certain sections

of national roads);

About 5,000 km of certain secondary local

roads that may notice a significant rerouting

in traffic patterns.

(1) No taxed road network in the department of Corsica and in the

Departments of Lot, Haute-Savoie, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and

Alpes-Maritimes.

3. HOW DOES IT WORK?

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The taxed road network is divided into 4100 sections each about 4 km long and each of

which are located between two intersections. Ever section is equipped with a tariff point

(GPS coordinates). The tax for the relevant section of road becomes payable when this

tariff point is passed. So, all vehicles must be equipped with an on-board unit. The OBU

transmits the GPS data which calculates the tax.

3. HOW DOES IT WORK?

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4. HOW IS IT CALCULATED?

Vehicles must be equipped with an electronic OBU (on-board unit) in order to pay the

ecotaxe. This GPS-capable unit records the passing of virtual limits, the "Tariff points"

(points de tarification) and transmits the GPS data to calculate the tax.

The ecotaxe will increase transport costs by about 3% for long distances and by up to

10% for short distances.

Two regional discounts exist:

30% for the Aquitaine and Midi-Pyrénées regions

50% for the Bretagne region

Subscribers to a registered electronic toll system company (Sociétés Habilitées au

Télépéage, SHT) receive a discount of 10%.

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A distinction was made between three vehicle categories according to weight and number

of axles in order to prepare a tariff table. The following values are applicable from

January 1st 2014:

Tariffs 2013

4. HOW IS IT CALCULATED?

EUR cent per

km and vehicle

PL1 PL2 PL3

Euro I and below 9.6 12.0 16.8

Euro II 9.2 11.5 16.1

Euro III 8.8 11.0 15.4

Euro IV 8.0 10.0 14.0

Euro V 7.6 9.5 13.3

Euro VI 6.8 8.5 11.9

Electr. 6.8 8.5 11.9

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5. WHEN WILL IT BE INTRODUCED?

A voluntary test phase starts from July 2013 without any initial taxation.

Please note the actualisation!

After a postponement by the government, the law enters into force on

January 1st 2014 and the ecotaxe will be charged from this date. (Status 05.09.2013)

Both transport service providers as well as forwarders only have a few short months to

prepare for the new system:

Estimation of the tax payable on existing routes and contracts

Comparison of the tax amount with a corresponding price increase (transfer to the

client)

Selection of the most suitable routes

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6. HOW WILL IT BE CONTROLLED?

The ecotaxe is a tax that is regulated by customs legislation. Compliance will be

controlled by government authorities (Police Nationale, Gendarmerie, Customs). Every

violation will be punished by a fine of up to EUR 750 with the immobilisation of the

vehicle and a flat-rate fee that corresponds to a 500 km trip (this is doubled if the

violation is repeated within 30 days).

A control system will be introduced in order to ensure compliance with the statutory

provisions. This includes:

173 stationary automatic controls (control bridges)

130 mobile automatic controls

200 mobile control vehicles

Several hundred portable terminals

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7. WHAT SHOULD I DO TO BE PREPARED?

Due to the amount of the tax it is important to start taking the ecotaxe into account now in

quotes in order to ensure that your plans and calculations are realistic and that you do not

sustain any losses.

Ecotaxe calculator:

A team of experts from the PTV Group have been addressing the issues associated with

the introduction of the ecotaxe since October 2011. It has developed a toll and tax

calculator that enables the data applicable on the day of the planned transport to be

included in order to calculate the precise ecotaxe amount. PTV has developed an up-to-

date toll scenario for every toll and tax system in Europe which contains all the current

calculation parameters. This allows the user to see the impact this has on their costs

depending on the transport date. The ecotaxe calculator is an integral part of the PTV

logistics software.

Innovation prize for best ecotaxe and toll calculation:

The PTV solution for determining the toll costs and the

French ecotaxe was awarded the 13th Prix de l'Innovation

Logistique, organised by Reed Expositions France and the

SITL fair, in the "Best Product Innovation" category.

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7. WHAT SHOULD I DO TO BE PREPARED?

The calculation of ecotaxe is an integral part of the PTV logistics software.

TLNplanner - Europe's most accurate transport route planner

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PTV Smartour – the trip optimiser

PTV Smartour automatically plans your orders to optimise your trips and considers all the restrictions that are of interest for you and your customer.

>> Get in contact!

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8. CONTACT

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions regarding the calculation of

ecotaxe using PTV software!

PTV Group

Energieweg 1

3542 DZ Utrecht, The Netherlands

PTV Group

Dehemlaan 31,

8900 Ieper, Belgium

Email: info.nl@ptvgroup.com / info.be@ptvgroup.com

Tel: +31 (0) 346 581 600 / +32 (0) 57 224 522

www.ptvgroup.com

Sources:

www.douane.gouv.fr/page.asp?id=4251

www.ecomouv.com/de