Driving a 4.25-tonne motorhome on a car licence: what the new EU rules mean, and why the UK is not part of them

What the EU directive allows

The EU's new driving licence directive (Directive (EU) 2025/2205) was adopted on 22 October 2025 and published in the Official Journal on 5 November 2025. Article 6 widens category B for motorhomes. Once a driver has completed training, passed a test, or both (each country chooses), a standard EU car licence will cover:

• a motorhome above 3,500 kg and up to 4,250 kg maximum authorised mass;
• the same motorhome towing a trailer, provided the whole combination stays within 5,000 kg.

The extra entitlement will appear on the licence as a new harmonised EU code, 96.02. Annex V sets the training at at least 7 hours, on the road or on a closed track, covering how a heavier vehicle handles, loading, emergency braking, reversing and parking.

The real timetable: 2029, not 2027

Many websites and some magazines give November 2027 as the start date. We went back to the official text. Article 29 gives EU countries until 26 November 2028 to adopt their national rules and requires them to apply those rules from 26 November 2029. Only points (j) and (k) of Article 9(2) start earlier, on 26 November 2027: they cover alternatively fuelled vehicles (electric, gas, hydrogen…) between 3.5 and 4.25 tonnes, for drivers with two years on a B licence. The text is explicit that motorhomes are not covered by that early measure.

Where EU countries stand

As of 21 October 2026, no country has published the final text of its motorhome training. Here is what we could confirm for the countries British motorhomers visit most:

Whatever each country decides, the 96.02 entitlement will only exist on licences issued by EU countries. The Netherlands scheme is a domestic rule limited to Dutch roads: do not count on it with a foreign licence.

The rules in the UK today

The UK had left the EU when the directive was adopted, so it does not apply here. In Great Britain the rules for motorhomes are unchanged:

• Up to 3,500 kg maximum authorised mass (the “MTPLM” or “MAM” shown on the manufacturer's weight plate): a category B licence is enough.
• 3,500 to 7,500 kg: you need C1. If you passed your car test before 1 January 1997, you were automatically granted this entitlement and usually still have it. Drivers who passed later must take a separate C1 test.
• At 70, a car licence can be renewed online, but C1 cannot: it is renewed by post, with a D4 medical report completed by a doctor, and then every three years.

One exception exists. Since 10 June 2025, a category B licence covers zero-emission vehicles (electric or hydrogen) up to 4,250 kg, with no extra training and no change to your photocard. The government guidance applies it to the vehicle types normally driven on a B licence. Petrol, diesel and hybrid vehicles, which means almost every motorhome on sale, stay capped at 3,500 kg.

Is a change on the way for diesel motorhomes? Not for now. A parliamentary petition asking for the 4,250 kg limit for motorhomes gathered 11,265 signatures. In its response of 23 March 2026, the Department for Transport said it had not assessed the merits of such a change and that any future change would require a public consultation and an impact assessment. As of 21 October 2026, we have found no consultation published on GOV.UK.

To check where your own vehicle sits, our tool Which licence do I need for my motorhome? reads the maximum authorised mass from your documents and tells you the entitlement you need.

Taking a UK-licensed motorhome to the Continent

• Your UK photocard licence is accepted in the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein without an international driving permit. It is your UK entitlements that count, not the local rules for local licences.
• After November 2029, French, German or Dutch drivers will be able to drive a 4,250 kg motorhome on a car licence. A British driver without C1 will not, unless UK law changes.
• The GB allowance for electric vehicles up to 4,250 kg does not appear on your licence. We found no official confirmation that EU countries recognise it: if you take a heavy electric vehicle abroad, check with the embassy of each country you will cross.
• Above 3,500 kg, many countries apply lorry rules: lower speed limits, different toll classes and, in some places, bans on certain roads. Check before you set off.

We will update this article when the UK government publishes a consultation, or when the main EU countries publish their training rules.