Tesla is taking another critical step towards popularizing its Full Self-Driving (FSD) system, which aims to revolutionize driver assistance technologies, in the European continent. Following the historic first approval received from the Netherlands in recent months, the second European Union country where the system can be used legally is officially Lithuania.

With the announcement made on the This move clearly shows that the company will not be limited to a single country in Europe, one of the largest markets outside the American continent, and will expand rapidly through country-based approval processes.

• Second Official Stop in Europe:Lithuania is the second state in Europe to legally accept Tesla FSD technology, following the Netherlands, which gave the first green light to the system in April.

• Bureaucratic Shortcut Formula:Instead of testing processes from scratch within its own organization, the Lithuanian Transport Safety Administration considers the type approval given by the Netherlands as directly valid by using the “mutual recognition” mechanism allowed by EU legislation.

• Responsibility rests entirely with the driver:While Lithuanian officials state that the system will increase comfort on long roads, they emphasize that the software is now at Level 2 autonomy standards and that the person behind the wheel should not divert their attention from the road.

Dutch Approval Creates Domino Effect

Tesla’s regulatory expansion strategy in Europe is actually based on the wave of approvals given by the Dutch Vehicles Authority (RDW) last April. Dutch regulators granted temporary EU type approval to the software following 1.6 million kilometers of road tests within the scope of the United Nations’ DCAS (Driver Control Assistance Systems) regulation.

Legal regulation No. 2018/858 of the European Parliament and Council allows an automotive technology approved by an EU member state to be legally recognized by other member states without the need for an additional testing procedure. The Lithuanian administration used exactly this legal gap and the advantage of mutual recognition.

Lithuanian Minister of Transport Juras Taminskas stated that they are pleased that the country is one of the first European countries where cars can drive themselves, and that this technology will contribute to driving safety and comfort, especially in monotonous highway traffic.

Hardware Needs and Regional Expansion Plans

The first wave of distribution, which started in Lithuania, primarily covers 2023 and later model vehicles with the new generation processor and camera architecture called Hardware 4 (HW4).

Tesla, which has started demo drives in major cities, especially Vilnius, plans to release a special optimization update for older production Hardware 3 (HW3) architecture vehicles in the coming summer months.

The company’s next targets include Greece and Belgium, which are preparing similar legislation. The fact that test drive permits have already been obtained, especially in the Flanders region of Belgium, shows that expansion in western Europe is much closer. Giant automotive markets such as Germany, France and Italy are expected to join this caravan in the second half of the year.

Will There Be Collective Approval Across the European Union?

Although country-based personal approvals produce a temporary solution for Tesla, the real big reward stands out as receiving a single collective permit document that will be valid throughout the European Union. In this direction, the Dutch Vehicles Association (RDW) continues its official initiatives before the European Technical Committee on Motor Vehicles (TCMV).

However, this process does not proceed as smoothly as individual approvals. Although the issue was discussed at the committee’s last meeting in May, no official vote has been taken yet.

The next votes are expected to be held in the sessions in late June, July and October. In order for collective approval to be granted, 55 percent of EU member countries (at least 15 countries) and these countries representing 65 percent of the total EU population are required.

Security Crack from Scandinavian Countries:Transport authorities in Scandinavian countries such as Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway take a very ambivalent stance against Tesla’s software. According to leaked regulation correspondence, northern countries are seriously concerned about the tendency of the FSD system to exceed legal speed limits at some moments and the reliability of decision systems in very icy, strong winter rules.

Elon Musk’s Future Strategy and Subscription Model

The global success of the FSD system means not only a technical success for Tesla and CEO Elon Musk, but also a vital financial milestone.

Musk’s long-term business plans and huge bonus packages are tied to very aggressive goals of reaching 10 million active FSD subscribers worldwide by 2035. The company currently has approximately 1.3 million active users worldwide.

In order to ensure economic sustainability, Tesla is radically changing its business model in the European market. As of May 21, the one-time bulk FSD purchase option will be completely terminated throughout Europe. The system will now only work with a subscription model of 99 euros per month.

This breakthrough is described as the biggest module of Tesla’s vision of transforming from a manufacturer selling hardware into a technology company that generates regular software revenue.

This “supervised” process, in which drivers remain legally responsible on the road, constitutes an impermanent but huge step on the road to a fully autonomous future.