Two-wheelers, tricycles and quadricycles do not follow car legislation. They have their own type approval framework, Regulation (EU) 168/2013, with its own sub-categories and its own documentation. The office handles the dossier from classifying the vehicle through to registration in the Technical Vehicle Archive.
The problem it solves
A two-wheeler or quadricycle cannot be plated unless a type approval covers it and its technical data is registered in the Technical Vehicle Archive. That is where importers and dealerships usually get stuck: the European approval exists, but the Greek dossier has not been prepared, or it does not survive review.
Classification decides everything else. A quadricycle can be L6e or L7e depending on mass and speed, and the difference changes both the technical requirements and the driving licence your customer will need. The wrong class means a dossier that comes back.
The L categories, as the Regulation defines them
The table follows the designations of Annex I to Regulation (EU) 168/2013. Criteria are given in short form — in the Regulation each is accompanied by further conditions per sub-category.
| Code | Designation | Key criteria |
|---|
| L1e | Light two-wheel powered vehicle | ≤ 50 cm³ · ≤ 45 km/h · ≤ 4,000 W |
| L1e-A | Powered cycle | Assistance cut off ≤ 25 km/h · ≤ 1,000 W |
| L1e-B | Two-wheel moped | Any other L1e vehicle |
| L2e | Three-wheel moped | ≤ 45 km/h · ≤ 4,000 W · ≤ 270 kg · up to 2 seats |
| L2e-P | Three-wheel moped for passenger transport | Any L2e that is not L2e-U |
| L2e-U | Three-wheel moped for utility purposes | Goods only, with a rigid partition |
| L3e | Two-wheel motorcycle | Two-wheeler not classifiable as L1e |
| L3e-A1 | Low-performance motorcycle | ≤ 125 cm³ · ≤ 11 kW · ≤ 0.1 kW/kg |
| L3e-A2 | Medium-performance motorcycle | ≤ 35 kW · ≤ 0.2 kW/kg |
| L3e-A3 | High-performance motorcycle | Any other L3e motorcycle |
| L3e-…E / …T | Enduro / Trial motorcycle | Seat height, ground clearance, gear ratio, mass |
| L4e | Two-wheel motorcycle with side-car | L3e base plus a side-car |
| L5e | Powered tricycle | ≤ 1,000 kg · tricycle that is not L2e |
| L5e-A | Tricycle | Mainly passenger transport · up to 5 seats |
| L5e-B | Commercial tricycle | Goods only · enclosed cab · up to 2 seats |
| L6e | Light quadricycle | ≤ 45 km/h · ≤ 425 kg · up to 2 seats |
| L6e-A | Light on-road quad | ≤ 4,000 W · on-road use |
| L6e-BP | Light quadri-mobile for passenger transport | Enclosed cab · ≤ 6,000 W |
| L6e-BU | Light quadri-mobile for utility purposes | Goods only · ≤ 6,000 W |
| L7e | Heavy quadricycle | ≤ 450 kg passengers / ≤ 600 kg goods |
| L7e-A1 | Heavy on-road quad A1 | ≤ 15 kW · straddle seat and handlebar |
| L7e-A2 | Heavy on-road quad A2 | ≤ 15 kW · seats other than straddle |
| L7e-B1 | All-terrain quad | Ground clearance ≥ 180 mm · ≤ 90 km/h |
| L7e-B2 | Side-by-side buggy | Up to 3 seats, two side by side · ≤ 15 kW |
| L7e-CP | Heavy quadri-mobile for passenger transport | ≤ 15 kW · ≤ 90 km/h · up to 4 seats |
| L7e-CU | Heavy quadri-mobile for utility purposes | Goods only · up to 2 seats |
Common dimensional limits apply throughout: length up to 4,000 mm (3,000 mm for L6e-B, 3,700 mm for L7e-C), width up to 2,000 mm (1,000 mm for L1e, 1,500 mm for L6e-B and L7e-C) and height up to 2,500 mm.
Which regime applies to your vehicle
Two successive regimes coexist in the paperwork today, and the approval number itself tells them apart:
- Regulation (EU) 168/2013 — the current framework. The approval number takes the form e9*168/2013*11302*03. The information document follows Annex I to implementing Regulation (EU) 901/2014.
- Directive 2002/24/EC — repealed, but approvals issued under it still accompany vehicles. There the information document is Annex II to the Directive.
Before anything is filled in, it must be established which of the two applies to that specific approval. This is one of the points where a dossier quietly fails: the fields look identical, but they are drawn from a different paragraph of a different document.
Nationally, the type approval procedures for category L are laid down by Joint Ministerial Decision 129846/2021 (Gov. Gazette B΄ 2384/7.6.2021). Registration certificates and plates are governed by the new Greek Road Traffic Code, Law 5209/2025.
Is it necessary?
Yes, where a new vehicle type is being registered in Greece. Without a notified type approval and registered technical data, the Transport Directorate will not issue a registration certificate. For a one-off vehicle covered by no approval at all, the route is different and is assessed separately.
What makes it difficult
The category L technical file has one hundred and forty-one fields, and each is drawn from a specific paragraph of a specific document. Electric vehicles add their own logic: engine capacity and taxable horsepower stay empty, while the engine type is written as the voltage and power of the electric system. These are the points where a dossier comes back for a reason that is not obvious at first sight.
Then there is the legislation. The delegated regulations supplementing 168/2013 — functional safety, vehicle construction, environmental performance — are amended regularly, and a dossier resting on a superseded version rarely passes.
