After years of promises and regulatory delays, Tesla's Full Self-Driving Beta has arrived in Europe. In July 2025, Tesla opened Phase 1 of its FSD Beta program in five countries: Germany, France, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. It is the most significant expansion of Tesla's autonomous driving technology outside North America to date.
Who Can Access FSD Beta in Europe
Eligibility is limited to Tesla vehicles equipped with Hardware 4.0 (HW4), introduced in production vehicles from late 2023 onwards. Participants must have an active FSD subscription or have purchased the FSD package. Tesla invited approximately 50,000 owners across the five launch countries, with around 10,000 selected for the initial early access cohort.
The program covers urban and suburban driving scenarios. Motorway driving features — already available as part of Autopilot in Europe — are not new, but the FSD Beta adds navigation through city streets, intersections, and roundabouts.
How It Differs from the US Version
European FSD Beta runs on FSD versions 12.6.4 and 13.2.9, the same software stack available in North America. However, the European deployment must comply with UNECE regulations, which impose stricter requirements on automated lane changes, speed limits, and driver monitoring. Tesla secured the necessary type approvals for Phase 1 countries, but full regulatory approval for unsupervised FSD remains a separate — and longer — process.
The Timeline
| Phase | Period | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1 (current) | July–September 2025 | 5 countries, ~10,000 early access users |
| Phase 2 | October 2025+ | Wider rollout to all FSD subscribers |
| Unsupervised FSD | TBD | Pending full regulatory approval |
What European Owners Should Know
Driver attention is mandatory at all times. The system uses cabin camera monitoring and will disengage if the driver is not paying attention. Tesla is collecting driving data from European roads to improve the neural network's handling of European-specific scenarios — different road markings, roundabout conventions, and speed zone patterns.
For owners without HW4, there is no upgrade path announced. Vehicles with HW3 cannot run the current FSD Beta software. Tesla has not indicated whether a hardware retrofit program will be offered in Europe.
Phase 1 is a validation exercise as much as a product launch. Tesla needs European driving data, regulatory feedback, and real-world performance metrics to push toward full approval. For now, it is a significant first step.