EU – Grace Period for Smart Tacho II Proposed

The European Commission has proposed a grace period until the end of the year for trucks and coaches registered after 21 August 2023 to be equipped with the new smart tachograph version 2 (SMT2), for both national and international transport.

Member States can give operators until 18 August 2025 to retrofit heavy-duty vehicles registered between 21 August 2023 and 31 December 2023 with SMT2 devices. This date is aligned with the retrofitting deadline for vehicles not equipped with SMT2 devices engaged in international transport operations.

IRU Director of EU Advocacy Raluca Marian said, "We're glad to see that the Commission has listened to us and EU Member States. There simply aren't enough smart tachograph 2 devices available right now.

"Without this grace period, tens of thousands of new trucks and coaches would have been stuck at warehouses and parking lots across the EU.

"Several Member States had unilaterally decided to provide a grace period. But we're happy to see that the Commission has stepped up and showed leadership by proposing a coordinated and harmonised approach."

"If new state-of-the-art vehicles are blocked from being delivered with smart tachograph 1 devices, we will be preventing the operation of more environmentally friendly vehicles, jeopardising Europe's CO₂ reduction targets," she added.

Operators should still familiarise themselves with SMT2 in the event this proposal is not accepted.

Compared to its previous version, the SMT2 includes additional features such as automatic registration of border crossings and the possibility for enforcers to view data remotely.

The SMT2 is a key tool for monitoring compliance with EU driving and rest time rules.