Tesla FSD appears in Europe

Tesla’s Full Self-Driving, the driver-assistance system Tesla sells as “Full Self-Driving (Supervised),” has been approved for use in the Netherlands, the first such approval in Europe. (rdw.nl) The Dutch vehicle authority, RDW, said on April 10 that it issued type approval after more than one and a half years of testing on public roads and a test track. Tesla said customer cars in the Netherlands would start getting the software in the following days through an over-the-air update. (rdw.nl) (electrive.com) In practical terms, the system can steer, brake and accelerate on highways and city streets, but the person in the driver’s seat still carries legal responsibility. RDW said the car is “not self-driving,” and the driver must stay attentive and able to take over immediately. (rdw.nl) (unece.org) Europe’s rulebook changed before Tesla’s rollout did. United Nations Regulation No. 171 for Driver Control Assistance Systems entered into force on September 26, 2025, creating a framework for Level 2 systems that assist with steering and speed while requiring constant human supervision. (eur-lex.europa.eu) (unece.org) That matters because Europe had been slower than the United States to allow more capable hands-off driver-assistance features on public roads. The Dutch approval gives Tesla a national foothold and a template it can use in bids for broader approval across the European Union. (electrive.com) (msn.com) Tesla’s European version is arriving under tighter limits than the one sold in the United States. RDW said the system monitors the driver’s eyes and readiness to retake the wheel, and it can disable itself temporarily if the driver stays inattentive. (rdw.nl) Tesla also had to build a local testing record. Electrive reported that the company logged 1.6 million kilometers of European test driving with the system active, plus more than 4,500 track scenarios, before winning Dutch approval. (electrive.com) Safety groups have pushed back on the broader regulatory direction. The European Transport Safety Council warned during the rulemaking process that allowing system-initiated lane changes in Level 2 systems could leave drivers legally responsible for crashes caused during maneuvers they did not start themselves. (etsc.eu) Tesla and regulators describe the Dutch decision in narrower terms. RDW said correct use of the system “makes a positive contribution to road safety,” but repeated that the vehicle remains under driver control at all times. (rdw.nl) That is why the first videos from Amsterdam matter less as a spectacle than as proof of a legal change: Tesla drivers in one European country can now use the company’s most advanced supervised driving software on public roads, and the rest of Europe is next in the approval queue. (rdw.nl) (electrive.com)