Tesla’s expansion of Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in Europe could soon expand well beyond the Netherlands, as the Dutch vehicle authority (RDW) has formally notified the European Commission of its intent to seek approval for the system across the entire European Union.
The development comes just days after Tesla secured its first European approval for FSD (Supervised) in the Netherlands, marking what could be a significant shift from a single-country rollout to a potential continent-wide deployment.
From national approval to EU-wide adoption
According to Bernd van Nieuwenhoven, RDW’s general manager of type approvals, the regulator is confident in the system’s safety following its evaluation process.
“If it is good enough for the Netherlands, it is good enough for Europe,” he said, highlighting the country’s role as a benchmark for broader regulatory decisions. (via Reuters)
The EU approval process is now underway, with several key steps remaining before Tesla’s system can be used across all member states.
What happens next
To move from national approval to EU-wide acceptance, the following steps must be completed:
- RDW must formally submit the application to the European Commission
- All EU member states will vote on the proposal
- Approval requires a majority vote within the responsible committee
If successful, the approval would allow Tesla’s FSD to be used across all EU countries. In the meantime, individual countries may still choose to allow the system independently, using the Netherlands’ approval as a reference.
A ripple effect beyond the EU
If approved at the EU level, the impact could extend beyond the bloc. The Netherlands is widely seen as a regulatory leader in vehicle approvals, and its decisions often influence policies in neighbouring regions.
That means a successful vote could pave the way not only for adoption across Europe, but also in other countries that look to EU standards when shaping their own regulations.
With Tesla already having a strong presence in the Netherlands—where around 100,000 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles are on the road—the potential user base for FSD is significant.
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