Germany’s Transport Minister Backs FSD Approval
Germany’s transport minister wants Tesla FSD (Supervised) approved across the EU sooner rather than later.
On 6 October 2026 the Federal Ministry of Transport published Steffen Bilger’s statement. Tesla has offered to rename FSD Supervised to Tesla Assisted Driving. Germany and Tesla also agreed the system may go over the posted speed limit by at most 10%, and Berlin will support that in the European process.
German owners still do not have FSD (Supervised). This is ministry politics and an EU push, not a software unlock. For the wider German picture (Eifel pilot, KBA testing, EU wait), see our Germany page and the earlier piece on Bilger’s appointment.
What Bilger said
The ministry calls the “FSD” name “somewhat misleading.” It is not a system that takes over the full driving task. It can help with accelerating, braking, and steering. The driver has to stay attentive.
Tesla’s offer: rename it Tesla Assisted Driving.
Bilger on the September talks:
“We quickly found a common understanding and reached a constructive agreement. On this basis I will now work to ensure that the system is approved across Europe soon. My goal is that Tesla drivers can use the advantages of Assisted Driving throughout the EU as quickly as possible.”
Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV), 6 October 2026
Liability came up too. Because this is driver assistance, the driver stays 100% responsible for safe driving. That matches how FSD (Supervised) is sold elsewhere: attentive driver, ready to take over. See Tesla’s Full Self-Driving support page for the product framing.
Musk’s reply the next morning: “🇩🇪 Danke Schön! 🇩🇪” (X).
The 10% speed deal
Speed offset has been one of the sticky EU fights. Some member states and officials have worried that assistance software which regularly sits above the posted limit looks like a soft rewrite of traffic rules. Owners, meanwhile, know that rigid under-speed behaviour can look odd in real traffic.
On the BMV page the number is simple: at most ten percent over the posted maximum. Germany will back that in Brussels. The ministry even says small, situation-dependent overshoots can help traffic flow.
That does not mean German Autobahn culture just got a green light for unlimited FSD speeds. It means Berlin and Tesla have a shared figure they are prepared to defend inside the EU type-approval conversation. If you have been waiting for Germany to pick a concrete offset instead of only signalling concern, this is that figure.
EU first
The written BMV article is EU-first. Germany is working with the Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt (KBA), the Dutch type-approval authority, and Tesla. The stated goal is timely continuation of the European approval process, not a unilateral German customer launch announced in the same text.
Same day, at a Tagesspiegel Background conference (dpa via Heise), Bilger said an EU deal is the sensible path. If that fails, Germany would need to discuss “what can be done in Germany.” That national-fallback line is not in the written BMV page. Keep it as conference reporting, not as a ministry circular that Germany has already recognised the Dutch file.
How soon a TCMV yes turns into downloads is a separate clock. We walked through that chain here: How soon could EU FSD be available after a TCMV yes?
In short: EU-wide validity for the Dutch provisional type approval still needs a qualified majority in the Technical Committee on Motor Vehicles (TCMV), then a Commission implementing act. National recognition under Article 39(5) of Regulation (EU) 2018/858 is a different path. Several countries already used that national path. Germany has not.
Where FSD (Supervised) is already approved in the EU
These countries recognised the Dutch RDW provisional type approval (Art. 39). Live status also sits on our EU tracker.
| Country | Approval / recognition date |
|---|---|
| Netherlands | 10 April 2026 (RDW provisional type approval) |
| Lithuania | 20 May 2026 |
| Estonia | 29 May 2026 |
| Denmark | 9 June 2026 |
| Belgium | 10 June 2026 |
| Slovenia | 7 September 2026 |
| Czechia | 21 September 2026 |
| Croatia | 29 September 2026 |
Germany is not on that list, and this BMV statement does not put it there. Testing and the Eifel supervised shuttle pilot remain a different story from a nationwide owner unlock.
What the BMV page does and does not claim
It is easy for secondary posts to over-read a ministry article. Stick to what the BMV actually published.
The page does say Germany will push for timely EU approval after constructive September talks. It does say Tesla offered the Assisted Driving name. It does say a maximum 10% speed offset is the shared approach Germany will support. It does say the driver stays fully responsible. It does mention collaboration with the KBA and the Dutch authority.
The page does not announce German customer availability. It does not say Germany has recognised the RDW Art. 39 exemption. It does not claim the rename is already live in European car software. It does not transfer liability away from the driver. Anyone circulating those claims is ahead of the text.
Day-to-day type approval and permits still run through the KBA. The ministry sets political direction and speaks for Germany in EU forums. Both matter. They are not the same office. That split was already the story when Bilger was first lined up for the job in July. The new statement fills in policy substance that the appointment post never had.
Germany’s size still matters for the TCMV maths. Under qualified majority voting, a large member state’s position carries more weight than a small recognition letter on its own. France has looked cooler on the current package. Italy and Spain have not rushed a unilateral yes either. A German minister publicly arguing for timely EU approval, accepting a capped speed offset, and platforming a clearer assisted-driving name is useful signal for anyone watching the Brussels calendar. It is still not the same as a German Art. 39 recognition letter or a finished Commission act.
If you own a Tesla in Germany, the practical checklist is short. Watch for any KBA notes on assisted driving. Watch whether Berlin ever publishes a national recognition of the Dutch provisional approval. Watch the next TCMV agenda for an actual vote item, not only discussion. Until one of those moves, treat this BMV article as political support for the EU path, plus two concrete process positions: the Assisted Driving name and the 10% speed offset.
Summary
Bilger wants FSD (Supervised) enabled EU-wide soon. Tesla offered the name Tesla Assisted Driving. Germany will defend a 10% speed offset in the EU process. The driver stays fully responsible.
Does this need a new type approval before a TCMV vote? The BMV page does not say that. The live EU file is still the existing RDW Art. 39 provisional approval, which needs a TCMV qualified majority and then a Commission implementing act for EU-wide validity. The rename and 10% offset are what Germany says it will support in that process. If Tesla’s filed software does not already match those terms, RDW and Tesla would need the dossier to line up, but Bilger is not restarting type approval from scratch.
Primary source for today: the BMV page from 6 October 2026. We will update the Germany page and EU table when recognition or a TCMV vote actually changes, not when the speculation does.
