The COB, of which Motor Insurers’ Bureau of Ireland (MIBI) are members, has suspended the membership of the Belarusian and Russian Green Card Bureaux from participation in the Green Card System. This suspension takes effect on 30 June 2023 for an undetermined period.
The COB is domiciled in the EU and bound by the EU sanctions regime. Whilst neither the Belarusian or the Russian Bureaux are currently ‘designated’ under EU sanctions, prohibition to provide certain services, including IT and legal services, was introduced by the eighth package of EU sanctions. Therefore the COB took the decision to suspend the Belarusian and Russian Bureaux to mitigate the risks associated with an indirect or inadvertent breach of these sanctions.
As previously notified to MIBI members, the formal suspension of the Belarusian and Russian Bureaux follows Ireland’s and other Member States of the COB from the European Economic Area’s earlier decision to cancel the multilateral co-operation agreement with Russia and Belarus from 1 June 2023*.
The COB acts for the protection of cross-border road traffic victims by coordinating the activities of the Green Card System and the EU Motor Insurance Directives. Further information on the COB and the Green Card system can be found here in the FAQ’s of our Membership Area
*May 2023: IRL & Other EEA States to stop recognising Green Cards for Russian and Belarusian Vehicles