Mobility package: what you need to know – updates

This update follows the presentation of the Mobility Package before the European Court of Justice, which upheld all regulations except the obligation for trucks to return to their country of origin every eight weeks.

Recent European regulations, adopted on 15 and 31 July 2020, have established rules on:

• Cabotage: Regulation No 2020/1055 of 15 July 2020, applicable from 21 February 2022
• Posting of workers: Regulation No 2020/1057 of 31 July 2020, applicable from 2 February 2022

Definitions and principles:

Cabotage refers to the possibility for a road transport operator from one EU Member State to carry out domestic transport operations in another Member State where it is not established.

The posting of workers principle aims to guarantee posted workers the working and employment conditions applicable in the host Member State.

Posting applies when a transport company, established in an EU Member State:

• Temporarily posts workers (cabotage or cross-border transport)  
• In another Member State (= host Member State)
• On its own behalf and under its own responsibility
• To carry out road transport operations, under a contract concluded between the sending undertaking and the undertaking to which the service is provided
• Using vehicles subject to the European Regulation on driving and rest times.

IMPORTANT: Principal contractors (brokers and shippers) share responsibility for verifying posting certificates and A1 documents for non-EU drivers working for EU transport companies.

What has changed in 2022:

For cabotage:

• A mandatory 4-day cooling-off period between two cabotage periods
• Vehicles with a GVW exceeding 2.5 tonnes can no longer carry out domestic transport operations for 4 days in the same Member State following the end of the cabotage period
• The limit of 3 operations maximum over 7 days remains unchanged

For posting of workers:

• The driver is required to indicate the country they have entered upon crossing the border
• The driver must return to their home country every 4 weeks, with costs borne by their company
• The tractor must return to its country of registration every 8 weeks: Update: this measure is no longer applicable following the judgment of the European Court of Justice of 4 October 2024.
• Weekly rest is prohibited in the cab

Concrete implications:

• Mandatory return of both the driver and the vehicle to the country of origin
• Risk of empty return journeys
• Reduction of the available fleet
• Additional vehicles required for carriers
• Risk of withdrawal of certain suppliers who do not want to assume these new constraints
• Shortage of drivers and vehicles
• Consequently, an inevitable increase in costs

For more information, please contact your usual contact or consult the European regulations here.