Smart tachograph 2 & the Mobility Package: the deadlines for road transport
Adopted 2026-06-14 · ≈ 1 min read · 
edited by Dirk Baaijen
The Mobility Package (Regulation (EU) 2020/1054) requires trucks in international transport to fit the second-generation smart tachograph. Older vehicles had to switch by end 2024; ST1 follows on 18 August 2025, vans 2.5–3.5 t from July 2026. The deadlines at a glance.
The Mobility Package affects every carrier operating internationally. Beyond tighter driving and rest times (Regulation (EU) 2020/1054), it centres on the second-generation smart tachograph (ST2) — which records border crossings and loading/unloading automatically, enabling enforcement of cabotage and posting rules.
The retrofit deadlines
- 31 December 2024 — vehicles with an analogue or first-generation digital
tachograph in international transport had to be retrofitted to ST2. The Commission allowed a learning/information phase until 28 February 2025.
- 18 August 2025 — vehicles with the first smart tachograph (ST1) in
international transport must move to ST2.
- 1 July 2026 — vans between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes in international transport
come under the tachograph obligation.
Why it matters
ST2 is no administrative formality: without the right tachograph you risk fines and delays at border checks, and you cannot operate internationally in compliance. The automatic recording also makes enforcement stricter and more precise.
What it means for you
- Operating internationally? Map, per vehicle, which tachograph is fitted
and plan the retrofit before the deadline that applies to you.
- Vans 2.5–3.5 t? Account for the entry into scope from July 2026.
Want to know which EU regimes besides the Mobility Package affect your organisation — the Data Act, eFTI, EMSWe, the AI Act, NIS2 — and where your readiness stands? Take the Transport & Logistics scan.
Sources
- https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2020/1054/oj
Regulation (EU) 2020/1054 (Mobility Package): driving and rest times and the introduction of the second-generation smart tachograph. - https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2014/165/oj
Regulation (EU) 165/2014: the tachograph regime on which the version 2 requirements build.
Read next
Which smart tachograph deadline applies to my truck?
The deadline depends on your current device: analogue/first-generation digital had to be retrofitted by end 2024 (learning phase until 28 Feb 2025), ST1 to ST2 by 18 Aug 2025, and vans of 2.5-3.5 tonnes in international transport from 1 July 2026.
The Mobility Package: driving and rest times, cabotage and posting
The EU Mobility Package (2020) bundles three pillars for road transport: stricter driving and rest times plus driver return, market access with a cabotage cooling-off period and vehicle return, and posting rules with remuneration for international drivers.
What does the second-generation smart tachograph record?
The second-generation smart tachograph (ST2) records driving and rest times plus, new under the Mobility Package, automatic border crossings and loading/unloading events via satellite positioning.