Lux Express Latvia has filed a claim with the Administrative District Court against the Ministry of Transport of Latvia and the state-owned company Road Transport Administration (ATD), requesting that the state be ordered to compensate the company for the costs of providing state-mandated fare discounts on intercity commercial routes.
Under the Public Transport Services Law and Cabinet regulations, fare discounts are granted to members of large families (holders of the 3+ Family Card), people with disabilities, orphans, and politically repressed persons.
According to the company, for more than two years Lux Express Latvia has conscientiously provided fare discounts to these passenger groups and continues to do so, while not receiving the compensation provided for by law. The unpaid compensation for the period has already exceeded half a million euros.
“We fully support the availability of state-mandated fare discounts, but more than a year of discussions with the Ministry of Transport and the ATD regarding compensation payments has produced no results,” said Aldis Ķibēns, board member of Lux Express Latvia.
“Although the state has imposed an obligation on us to provide fare discounts to specific passenger groups,
the compensation process continues to be unjustifiably bureaucratic,
with new requirements constantly being introduced. The Ministry of Transport had the opportunity to decide on compensation payments, but returned the matter back to the ATD. The actions of the Ministry and the ATD in resolving this issue show that the state cannot be regarded as a reliable and trustworthy cooperation partner. Even now, by going to court, we still believe this situation can be resolved through negotiations, and the state must find the resources to ensure that the legally provided compensations are paid so passengers can continue to enjoy convenient intercity commercial transport services.”
On the 7th of April of this year, the ATD issued a decision recognizing Lux Express Latvia’s right to compensation and providing for compensation in the amount of 670,398 euros for transporting passengers entitled to fare discounts during the period from the 2nd of May, 2024 to the 31st of December, 2025.
At the same time, the ATD stipulated that payment of the compensation would only be possible after the company submitted documentation proving payment of value-added tax (VAT) and proper accounting of the relevant revenue in its bookkeeping records.
The authority also reserved the right to later revise the amount of compensation.
The ATD further stated that payment of the compensation depends on a decision by the Public Transport Council, whose relevant meeting is scheduled for the 14th of May.
Although the company considers the additional conditions imposed by the ATD to be prima facie unlawful, “Lux Express Latvia,” following the principle of good cooperation and seeking to secure compensation as quickly as possible, complied with all the authority’s requirements.
The company paid 75,664.81 euros in VAT into the state budget and submitted the relevant payment confirmations and accounting documents to the ATD.
“We have fulfilled all ATD requirements and paid the VAT from the company’s working capital despite rising costs in the transport sector linked to the fuel crisis,” Ķibēns added.
“We relied on the assumption that
after all conditions were met, the ATD would immediately ensure payment of the compensation.
To defend our own rights and the rights of our passengers through legal means, we are given only one month after receiving the ATD decision. The ATD knew about this deadline but failed to act. The prolonged delays by the Ministry of Transport and the ATD in making a final decision raise the question of whether the ministry even has sufficient funds available to compensate us and other carriers. At present, we have no confidence that the state will fulfill its obligations voluntarily and within a reasonable time frame.”
The company also pointed out that in 2022 the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in favor of a commercial transport operator in a similar case in Estonia.
Since launching domestic commercial routes in Latvia in May 2024, Lux Express Latvia has transported more than 123,000 passengers eligible for state fare discounts, more than 80% of whom were members of large families and students holding 3+ Family Cards.
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