How often must a driver return to base under the Mobility Package?

At least once every 4 weeks, to the employer's operational centre or to his place of residence. If the driver has taken two consecutive reduced weekly rests, the return must take place before the compensating regular rest, which in practice means every 3 weeks. The duty to organise the return lies with the haulier under Regulation (EU) 2020/1054.

Does the tractor unit have to return to base every 8 weeks?

No. The 8-week vehicle return obligation from Regulation (EU) 2020/1055 was annulled by the Court of Justice of the EU in its judgment of 4 October 2024. The Court upheld the other contested provisions of the Mobility Package, including driver return, rest outside the cab, posting and cabotage.

Can the regular weekly rest be taken in the cab?

No. The regular weekly rest of at least 45 hours may not be taken in the vehicle cab; the driver spends it in accommodation with sleeping facilities and the employer bears the cost. That is why OTSL, when planning a run to England or Sweden, asks the partner where the driver will spend the weekend if it falls en route.

Mobility Package: driver return, CJEU ruling

The Mobility Package requires you as a haulier to organise work so that the driver can return to base or home at least once every 4 weeks, or every 3 weeks if two consecutive reduced weekly rests were taken. The regular weekly rest of at least 45 hours may not be taken in the cab, and the employer pays for accommodation. The obligation to return the vehicle to base every 8 weeks does not apply: the Court of Justice of the EU annulled it on 4 October 2024. OTSL plans a partner's runs to England and Sweden so that the driver's return fits within the limit.

What does the Mobility Package require on driver return?

Regulation (EU) 2020/1054 obliges the haulier to organise the driver's work so that he can return to the employer's operational centre or to his place of residence at least once every four weeks. If the driver has taken two consecutive reduced weekly rest periods, the return must take place before the regular weekly rest of more than 45 hours that compensates for them, which in practice means every three weeks. The duty concerns how the haulier organises the work, not the driver's choice; it is you who must document that the return was possible.

The second element is rest. The regular weekly rest of at least 45 hours may not be taken in the vehicle cab. The driver sleeps in accommodation with suitable facilities, and the employer bears the cost. For a run to England or Sweden this means the route plan must say where the driver spends the weekend if it falls en route, and who pays for it.

Does the vehicle have to return to base every 8 weeks?

No. The obligation to return the vehicle to base every 8 weeks, introduced by Regulation (EU) 2020/1055, was annulled by the Court of Justice of the European Union in its judgment of 4 October 2024. The Court found the provision disproportionate; it upheld the other contested provisions of the Mobility Package, including driver return, posting and cabotage rules. If fleet planning in your company still revolves around an eight-week tractor return, you are doing so by choice, not obligation.

In international transport a second-generation smart tachograph is required. The replacement deadlines for older units are laid down in the regulation and must be checked in the European Commission's current schedule, because they depend on the type of unit fitted. OTSL gives no dates here so as not to cement a deadline that may have moved.

Planning a partner's run under the Mobility Package step by step

Ask about the return window. When placing a run, the OTSL forwarder asks when the driver last returned to base and how many reduced weekly rests he has taken in a row.
Fit the run to the limit. A run to England or Sweden is planned so that the driver's return to base fits within 4 weeks, or 3 if two consecutive reduced rests were taken.
Plan the weekly rest. If the regular rest falls en route, you decide where the driver spends it outside the cab and that the employer covers the accommodation.
Check the tachograph. Before an international run you make sure the vehicle has a second-generation smart tachograph or is still within the replacement deadline in the Commission's schedule.
Posting only where it applies. Bilateral transport is excluded from posting; cabotage and cross-trade fall under posting and the host country's minimum wage, so a return load "on the way" changes your obligations.
Document the return. Tachograph records, work schedules and proof of return to base are archived, because it is you who shows the return was organised.

Definitions

Mobility Package: the set of EU acts from 2020 on drivers' working time, market access and posting, including Regulations (EU) 2020/1054 and 2020/1055.
Driver return: the haulier's duty to organise work so that the driver can return to base or home at least once every 4 weeks (every 3 after two consecutive reduced rests).
Regular weekly rest: an uninterrupted rest of at least 45 hours that may not be taken in the vehicle cab.
CJEU (Court of Justice of the European Union): the EU court that annulled the 8-week vehicle return obligation in its judgment of 4 October 2024.
Second-generation smart tachograph: a recording unit with positioning and border-crossing registration, required in international transport.
Bilateral transport: carriage from the haulier's country of establishment to another country or back, excluded from the posting rules.

Haulier checklist before a run to GB or Sweden

Date of the driver's last return to base known and passed to the OTSL forwarder when accepting the order.
Number of consecutive reduced weekly rests checked; after two, return every 3 weeks applies.
Place of the regular weekly rest outside the cab planned if it falls en route.
Second-generation smart tachograph fitted, or replacement deadline checked in the Commission's schedule.
Type of carriage established: bilateral without posting, or cabotage or cross-trade with posting.
Tachograph records and proof of return archived in case of inspection.

When does the return rule not work the way you think?

The return obligation concerns the driver, not the vehicle: after the CJEU judgment of 4 October 2024 the tractor unit does not have to return to base every 8 weeks unless you decide so yourself. The 4-week limit shortens to 3 if the driver has taken two consecutive reduced weekly rests, so the same run to Sweden may fit within the limit for one driver and not for another. Posting and minimum wage rules do not apply to bilateral transport, but they start to apply once you take cabotage on the way back. Tachograph replacement deadlines depend on the type of unit, so check them in the current schedule, not in this article.