Tesla FSD (Supervised) approved in Czechia
Czechia has formally recognised the provisional approval for FSD (Supervised) granted in the Netherlands. This means Tesla's driver assistance system can now be used in seven EU member states - with a vote on EU-wide approval imminent.
Image: Tesla
In April, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) system received its first approval in Europe from the Dutch road authority RDW. However, this was not a standard EU type approval but a provisional EU type approval under Article 39 of EU Regulation 2018/858. This article is intended for new technologies or technical concepts that are not yet fully covered by existing EU regulations.
Since then, other EU member states have had the opportunity to recognise this provisional approval of Tesla FSD within their territories. This is exactly what Czechia has now done. Previously, the Czech Ministry of Transport had thoroughly examined the system’s functionality and the conditions of its approval in the European Union over the past months. It held discussions at the European level and with Tesla representatives, and reviewed the technical and operational documents submitted as part of the European approval process, assessing their relevance for decision-making in the Czech Republic.
Czechia to ‘pioneer’ Tesla FSD
“The Czech Republic is among the European leaders in autonomous driving technologies. We want to create conditions that support their development and gradual deployment while maintaining appropriate safety standards and regulatory oversight,” said Czechia’s Minister of Transport Ivan Bednárik regarding the approval of Tesla FSD (Supervised).
Czechia is thus following the example of five other EU states that have already recognised the Dutch approval: Lithuania was the first other EU country to recognise this approval on 20 May, followed by Estonia on 29 May, Denmark on 9 June, and Belgium on 10 June. After a nearly three-month pause, Slovenia joined on 7 September, making it the sixth EU member alongside the Netherlands to recognise the Dutch approval. Czechia followed on 21 September, becoming the seventh EU country where FSD (Supervised) may be used provisionally.
Moreover, a vote on EU-wide recognition of the Dutch approval for FSD (Supervised) may be imminent. According to a Tesla press release from early September, such a vote could take place as early as 6 October. A qualified majority requires the approval of 15 out of 27 member states in the responsible body, the Technical Committee – Motor Vehicles (TCMV), while simultaneously covering at least 65 per cent of the EU population.
Tesla provides FSD dashboard
To convince EU decision-makers of the reliability of FSD (Supervised)—which the manufacturer claims can even save lives – Tesla has launched a web dashboard containing, among other things, data on distances already covered using the assistance system and accidents.
Tesla once marketed FSD as an autonomous driving solution until US authorities intervened. Fully autonomous driving without the driver’s attention (“hands-off, eyes-off”) is not possible with FSD. Therefore, FSD now also carries the “supervised” designation. Today, FSD (Supervised) is classified as an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) at SAE Level 2 (partial automation). The system fundamentally enables automatic door-to-door driving, but the driver must always be ready to take control of the vehicle.