Particularities
The International Motor Insurance Card contains a field which includes letters for several countries. The field only displays the letters of States whose national Bureaux are members of the Green Card System. It shows the complete territorial scope of the International Motor Insurance Card.
The insurer who emits the Insurance Card is free to exclude specific countries from cover. The insurer excludes the territory of a state from cover by crossing its letters out. Before going on a trip abroad, it is therefore important to check if the corresponding country code is displayed on the International Motor Insurance Card and not crossed out.
However, Swiss insurance companies are not allowed to exclude the States of the registration plate agreement from insurance cover and to cross out their codes on the International Motor Insurance Card (art. 63 par. 2 of the road traffic act SVG). This is of little importance though. The registration plate delivered by one of these States certifies sufficient MTPL cover when entering the territory of another country of the registration plates agreement.
The International Motor Insurance Card does not provide any cover for the territory of Kosovo. When entering Kosovo, the local authorities demand the conclusion of a frontier insurance policy. The other way round, drivers of vehicles registered in Kosovo also have to conclude frontier insurance policies when entering the territories of Green Card countries or the European Economic Area.
A precondition for considering a possible future cover by the International Motor Insurance Card for this territory consists in the accession of a forthcoming bureau of insurance of Kosovo to the Green Card System. For this, this bureau would have to become a member of the Council of Bureaux (CoB). However, the constitution of the CoB only permits the membership of bureaux from countries which are UN members. The declaration of independence of Kosovo alone does not fulfil this condition. The UN cannot admit Kosovo among its members before the country has not been recognised by the majority of the international community. This is the reason why the territory of Kosovo still remains excluded from the territorial scope of the International Motor Insurance Card.
Please note:
Neither Swiss insurance companies nor the Swiss National Bureau of Insurance (NBI) are competent for dealing with demands for refund of frontier insurance policies issued in Kosovo. Requests for information and demands for refund concerning Kosovar frontier insurance have to be addressed to the Kosovo Insurance Bureau.
Kosovo Insurance Bureau
Fazli Grajqevci Nr.6
Prishtina 10000 Kosova
Office: +381 38 245 110
Fax: +381 38 245 110
During its General Assembly held on May 28th 2015 in Sopot (Poland), the Council of Bureaux (CoB) has admitted the Insurance Bureau of Azerbaijan as 47th member of the Green Card System as per 1st January 2016.
As of 1st January 2016, vehicles registered in Azerbaijan may circulate with International Motor Insurance Cards which are valid within the whole Green Card System (and accordingly also in Switzerland and Liechtenstein). These vehicles do not require frontier insurance cover any more when entering the territories of Switzerland and Liechtenstein, provided that their Insurance Card is valid.
As of 1st January 2016 too, the member companies of the Swiss National Bureau of Insurance (NBI) are authorised to issue International Motor Insurance Cards containing the country code AZ for Azerbaijan. A per 1st January 2018, this country code will become compulsory. Member companies are entitled to exclude cover for Azerbaijan by crossing out the country code AZ on the Insurance Cards they are issuing.
The country code CH provides cover for the Swiss territory as well as the territory of Liechtenstein. The Swiss Bureau is fulfilling the task of the insurance bureau of Liechtenstein. In the context of the International Motor Insurance Card, Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein are understood as one single territory. The country code CH on the card implies that both territories are covered.
The bilateral agreements between the EEA countries and Switzerland on one hand, and the Russian and Belarusian insurance bureaux on the other hand, were terminated on June 1, 2022, with a notice period of 12 months, ending on May 31, 2023. The COB General Assembly in 2023 decided to suspend the membership of the Russian and Belarusian insurance bureaux indefinitely starting from June 30, 2023.
Insurance companies from EEA countries and Switzerland are no longer allowed to issue International Motor Insurance Cards for the territories of Russia and Belarus. Additionally, International Motor Insurance Cards issued by the Russian and Belarusian insurance bureaux are no longer accepted in the EEA countries and Switzerland.
Cross-border motor vehicle traffic between the EEA countries and Switzerland, and Russia and Belarus, is no longer possible with the International Motor Insurance Card. Travellers to and from Russia and Belarus are required to purchase frontier insurance.
The General Assembly of COB has decided to suspend the membership of the Iranian Insurance Bureau indefinitely starting from January 1, 2024.
The Iranian Insurance Bureau is not allowed to issue International Motor Insurance Cards that are valid beyond December 31, 2023. Similarly, all insurance bureaux are requested not to issue International Motor Insurance Cards that are valid for the territory of Iran and have a validity period beyond December 31, 2023. Travellers to and from Iran are required to obtain frontier insurance starting from January 1, 2024.
