With less than two months until new EU tachograph rules hit vans engaged in cross-border work, 88% of the affected fleet still needs a unit installed, according to fresh survey data from IRU. Only 27.7% of operators say they are ready for the 1 July 2026 deadline. Another 46.5% say outright that they are not.
The figures point to a finish that will be decided less in the regulatory texts than in the workshops.
Operators told IRU the same story: limited workshop capacity, high installation costs and technical compatibility problems. With nearly nine in ten affected vehicles still waiting to be retrofitted, the question for many fleets is whether a fitter can see them before 1 July.
IRU is urging operators to book installations now, equip every vehicle used for international or cabotage work, train drivers and re-plan routes and schedules to fit the new driving and rest time regime.
What 1 July actually changes
From 1 July 2026, vans between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes used for cross-border transport, cabotage or cross-trade fall under the EU Mobility Package.
That brings three obligations:
- installation and use of a second-generation smart tachograph,
- EU drivers’ hours rules,
- and the posting of drivers regime where it applies.
The reach is wider than the tachograph itself. Even occasional cross-border activity can pull a van into scope. Cabotage and cross-trade can also trigger posting obligations, including registration through the EU road transport posting declaration portal.
In practice, van work moves much closer to the compliance regime familiar in heavy transport. Companies will have to manage driver cards, data downloads, records and inspection readiness, while drivers will need training on planning driving time, taking mandatory breaks and using the tachograph correctly day to day.
Read our ultimate guide for van operators: Tachograph for vans from 1 July 2026: obligations, penalties and practical fleet preparation
The 2.49-tonne workaround
The weight threshold is already shaping vehicle choice. Vans type-approved at up to 2.5 tonnes remain outside the new tachograph requirement, even when used for international hire or reward, provided their use and actual weight stay consistent with type approval.
Some operators and manufacturers have responded by looking at 2.49-tonne configurations as a way of staying below the line. The trade-off is payload, but the attraction is avoiding the new tachograph and Mobility Package obligations where the vehicle genuinely remains outside scope.
UK vans face a different squeeze
Separate from the EU tachograph deadline, van regulation is also tightening in the UK. Van fleets are facing closer attention on maintenance, loading and road safety, while lighter rules have been confirmed for certain 4.25-tonne electric vans. Across Europe, the regulatory picture for vans is becoming more fragmented rather than simpler.
For EU cross-border van operators, however, the immediate squeeze is the calendar. Fewer than three in ten say they are ready, and most affected vehicles still need the kit fitted before they can legally continue the same international work after 1 July.
