Rail sits at the intersection of Article 93 TFEU, the sector-specific basis for transport aid, and the general State aid rules of Articles 107–108 TFEU. Since 30 March 2026 the Commission’s 2008 Railway Guidelines have been replaced by the Land and Multimodal Transport Guidelines and a new Transport Block Exemption Regulation. Compensation for public service obligations continues to be governed by Regulation (EC) 1370/2007 and the Altmark criteria.
Treaty basis
Article 93 TFEU declares compatible aid that meets the needs of coordination of transport or reimburses the discharge of public service obligations. Articles 107–108 set the general prohibition, the compatibility exceptions and the notification duty. Rail measures are typically assessed under both.
The 2026 Land and Multimodal Transport Guidelines and TBER
On 16 March 2026 the Commission adopted the Land and Multimodal Transport Guidelines (LMTG) and the Transport Block Exemption Regulation (TBER). Both apply from 30 March 2026; the LMTG remain in force until further notice, the TBER until 31 December 2034. The LMTG replace the 2008 Community guidelines on State aid for railway undertakings.
The LMTG set the conditions under which notified aid can be declared compatible; the TBER exempts certain categories from notification altogether. Both cover aid to reduce external costs (modal-shift aid), aid for new commercial connections, aid for railway and inland-waterway facilities and private sidings, aid for the acquisition of vehicles, and aid for interoperability and for technical adaptation and modernisation. The LMTG additionally cover compensation for certain public service obligations in rail freight; the TBER additionally covers intermodal loading units and on-board cranes. For rolling-stock financing the vehicle-acquisition and interoperability categories are the relevant ones — including the possibility of exempted aid for ETCS retrofit and for zero-emission traction.
Regulation (EC) 1370/2007 — public service contracts
Compensation for public service obligations that complies with Regulation 1370/2007 is compatible and exempt from notification. Since 25 December 2023 competitive tendering has been the default for rail public service contracts, subject to the remaining direct-award bases. The overcompensation control in the Annex governs how capital costs of rolling stock, guarantees and pool access fees may be recognised. See the Regulation page.
Case law
Altmark (C-280/00) remains the anchor for distinguishing compensation that is not aid at all. The Court’s case law on Regulation 1370/2007 — on direct awards and on the treatment of compensation outside a formal contract — continues to shape practice; see the note on the 1370 direct-award case law. The CJEU’s 2026 judgment on the German Trassenpreisbremse (C-770/24) was decided under the access-charging rules, not State aid, but its consequence — who funds the infrastructure-cost shift — is a State-aid-adjacent question for any federal compensation scheme.
Why it matters for rolling-stock financing
Every guarantee, pool access fee, residual-value commitment and green-traction premium attached to a fleet has to be cleared either as PSO compensation under Regulation 1370/2007, as non-aid under Altmark, or as compatible aid under the LMTG or TBER. The 2026 instruments are more favourable to vehicle and interoperability aid than the 2008 Guidelines and make block-exempted support for modern fleets more practicable; their conditions should be checked before any public support is built into a financing structure.
Selected references
Article 93 TFEU · Articles 107–108 TFEU · Land and Multimodal Transport Guidelines (OJ C, 2026) · Transport Block Exemption Regulation (OJ L, 2026) · Regulation (EC) 1370/2007 as amended by Regulation (EU) 2016/2338 · CJEU C-280/00 Altmark.
Related topic notes
- Track access & capacity allocation · Track-access charges
- Fourth Railway Package · TSI · Safety certification & vehicle authorisation · ECM
- Freight corridors & combined transport · Passenger rights · State aid for rail · Altmark
Sources: European Commission, DG Competition, »LMTG and TBER« (accessed October 2026); Commission press release of 16 March 2026 as reported by EU Reporter and Railmarket.
Last reviewed: 19 October 2026.