Since 1 July 2026, vans and light commercial vehicles over 2.5 tonnes need a smart tachograph when they carry goods across a border or do cabotage. Their drivers now follow the same driving and rest time rules as truck drivers. Purely domestic transport is not affected. If you missed the deadline, the action plan below shows what to do, in order.
Last updated: October 2026
Does your van need a tachograph?
Under EU rules, yes, if all three apply:
- The maximum permissible mass of the van, including any trailer, is over 2.5 tonnes.
- It carries goods.
- The trip is international or cabotage (domestic transport inside another EU country).
Not sure? Check your van in our tachograph calculator. New to tachographs? Start with our beginner's guide to tachographs in vans.
Running a few vans? If your van needs a tachograph (check with our van tachograph calculator), you can do the downloads yourself with the myTacho Download Kit and an Android phone: one device for all your drivers, one-time purchase, no subscription. See the myTacho Download Kit →
The rule in short
The change comes from the EU Mobility Package. Regulation (EC) 561/2006, Article 2(1)(aa), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2020/1054, extends the driving and rest time rules to goods vehicles over 2.5 tonnes in international transport or cabotage from 1 July 2026. Under Regulation (EU) 165/2014, these vehicles must record those times with a tachograph.
For the official overview, see the European Commission's tachograph page.
Real situations: tachograph or not?
| Situation | Tachograph needed? |
|---|---|
| 3.2 t van delivering a customer's goods from Slovenia to Austria | Yes |
| 2.8 t van doing deliveries inside Croatia for a Slovenian company (cabotage) | Yes |
| 2.4 t van with a trailer, combined maximum mass 3.1 t, crossing a border with goods | Yes, the trailer counts |
| 3.0 t van used only for domestic deliveries | No, not under this EU rule |
⚖️ Weight means maximum permissible mass from the registration document, not the load on the day. An empty 3.1 t van is still a 3.1 t van.
Who is exempt?
Article 3(ha) of Regulation 561/2006 exempts vans over 2.5 and up to 3.5 tonnes that carry goods on the company's or driver's own account, not for hire or reward, where driving is not the driver's main activity. Typical examples are craftsmen and service technicians driving their own tools and materials to a job.
Exemptions are interpreted narrowly. Keep documents that show how the van is used, because in a check it is up to you to prove the exemption applies.
Missed the 1 July deadline? What you risk
Penalties are set by each country. In Germany, for example, breaches of the driving time and tachograph rules are fined from several hundred to several thousand euros per breach, and inspectors can stop the van from continuing its journey (CMS legal update). In many countries both the company and its responsible person can be fined.
🚐 Until a van is fitted, keep it on domestic work. The rule only covers international transport and cabotage, so a van that stays inside your own country does not need a tachograph under this EU rule.
What changes for your drivers
Van drivers in scope now follow the same rules as truck drivers under Regulation 561/2006. The main ones:
- Daily driving: maximum 9 hours, twice a week up to 10 hours.
- Breaks: at least 45 minutes after 4.5 hours of driving.
- Daily rest: normally 11 hours.
- Weekly driving: maximum 56 hours, and no more than 90 hours in two consecutive weeks.
Which tachograph is required?
Vans that come into scope need the second-generation smart tachograph, version 2 (often written G2V2 or Smart Tachograph 2). Analogue tachographs and older digital models are not an option for these vans.
The smart tachograph version 2 records the van's position by satellite and logs border crossings automatically. When the driver enters a loading or unloading operation, it also records where it happened. That makes cross-border and cabotage checks easier for inspectors.
Your action plan, step by step
- List the vans in scope. Check the maximum permissible mass on each registration document, add the trailer if you use one, and mark which vans go abroad or do cabotage.
- Book the installation. Vans in scope need a smart tachograph version 2, fitted and calibrated by an authorised tachograph workshop. In Slovenia, our partner workshop Tahografi Cuderman installs and calibrates tachographs.
- Order the cards. Every driver needs a personal driver card and the company needs a company card. See how to order and renew a driver tachograph card.
- Lock the tachograph to your company with the company card as soon as it is fitted, so your data is protected. Here is how to lock a tachograph to your company.
- Brief your drivers on the driving and rest times above.
- Set up downloads from day one. Driver cards at least every 28 days, the tachograph at least every 90 days (Regulation (EU) 581/2010). Keep the files for at least one year, longer where national law requires it (Slovenia: 5 years). See what a missed download can cost.
Step 6 is where most fines happen
The installation is done once. Downloads repeat every 28 and 90 days, for every driver and every van, and a missed one is fined even when nobody broke a driving time rule. For a company that never had tachographs in its vans, this is a new routine to build from scratch.
How myTacho helps
✅ Download where the van is: a driver card in under a minute, a smart tachograph in 5 to 10 minutes, with a company Android phone or tablet.
✅ No workshop trips and no office PC: the fleet manager, office staff or the drivers can do it.
✅ Reminders before every deadline: 7, 3 and 1 day before each card and tachograph download is due.
✅ Files at the office the same day: send DDD files by email, or straight to TAHOPRO if you use it for analysis and reports.
✅ No download fee per van or driver: one kit and one licensed device for all of them.
Want to compare first? See 5 ways to download tachograph data, or the step-by-step tachograph data download guide.
Questions about tachographs in vans
Do vans used only in my own country need a tachograph?
Not under this EU rule. It only covers international transport and cabotage. Check your national rules if you are unsure.
Does a trailer count towards the 2.5 tonnes?
Yes. The threshold applies to the maximum permissible mass of the vehicle including any trailer or semi-trailer.
Are any vans exempt even if they cross borders?
Yes. Vans that carry goods on the company's own account, not for hire or reward, where driving is not the driver's main activity, are exempt under Article 3(ha) of Regulation 561/2006. Craftsmen carrying their own tools are a typical example. Keep documents that show how the van is used.
Can I keep using the van at home until the tachograph is fitted?
Yes. Domestic transport is outside this rule, so the van can work inside your own country while you wait for the installation.
How often do I need to download the data?
Driver cards at least every 28 days and the vehicle unit at least every 90 days. Before selling a van or returning a leased one, do a final download.
Can I download a smart tachograph without a workshop?
Yes. With your company card and a download tool such as myTacho, your own team can download the tachograph at the van. myTacho works with all digital tachographs, including smart tachographs version 2.
New tachograph in your van? Handle the downloads yourself
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