500,000 driver jobs unfilled, yet Schengen sends drivers home after 90 days. UK hauliers demand a change

What the RHA is asking for

The Schengen rule allows non-EU citizens to stay in the area for a maximum of 90 days in any 180-day period. For UK drivers working on international routes, this limits how long they can work in the EU.

In a statement published ahead of the summit, the RHA calls on the UK government and the European Commission to make professional driver mobility “an explicit negotiating priority”. It wants:

• a practical, reciprocal arrangement for professional drivers, including an exemption from the 90/180 day rule,
• simpler border processes and customs procedures,
• an Entry/Exit System that is “efficient, proportionate and workable”,
• recognition of the different needs of trucks, coaches and vans.

“Growth cannot simply be announced or expected. It must be enabled,” the RHA said. It also welcomed the new SPS agreement on food and agricultural trade, expected to apply from 2027.

500,000 driver jobs unfilled

The RHA points to data from the IRU, the international road transport union. Europe has around 500,000 unfilled truck driver positions. About two-thirds of European road transport operators have turned down new contracts because they could not recruit enough drivers.

According to the RHA, limiting how long qualified drivers can work in the EU makes this shortage worse.

EES makes the rule harder to ignore

The 90/180 day rule is not new. However, the EU’s Entry/Exit System now records every entry and exit electronically, so the days are counted automatically at the border.

In its visa strategy published earlier this year, the European Commission admitted that some businesses “may require access to different Member States for more than 90 days within 180 days”. It said it would “work closely with Member States to identify pragmatic solutions to accommodate extended short stays”. The RHA welcomed this at the time.

However, in September, a Commission spokesperson said that the Schengen rules would not be changed, even though the Commission was aware that professions such as truck drivers need access for more than 90 days.

Turkish and Balkan drivers protest

UK hauliers are not the only ones affected. At the end of October, around 6,000 trucks could not enter Bulgaria at the Kapıkule–Kapitan Andreevo and Hamzabeyli–Lesovo crossings, as Turkish drivers protested against the 90/180 day rule. The protest was backed by Turkey’s international transport association UND, which has long warned that visa restrictions hurt trade with the EU.

Drivers from Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Montenegro have also blocked border crossings several times this year. They want conditions of stay adapted to their work and an exemption from the 90/180 day rule.

What it means for hauliers

For UK operators, the summit on 20 November could show whether the EU is ready to treat professional drivers differently from tourists. Until then, the 90/180 day rule applies in full, and drivers who overstay risk fines or entry bans.

Operators running long international jobs should keep a close eye on how many days each driver has spent in the Schengen area and plan rotations accordingly.