Tesla’s push to get Full Self-Driving (Supervised) approved across Europe has hit another speed bump. France has officially decided not to approve the software in its current form, claiming the system raises too many safety concerns to allow it on public roads today.
In a video shared on X by @frizulls, French Minister of Transportation Philippe Tabarot laid out the government’s stance, stating:
“The safety trade-offs are not yet sufficient to authorize it as it currently stands. All the more so since this system is not a self-driving system; So what are our concerns? Without going into overly technical detail, there are several.”
France considers FSD unsafe in its current state and won't allow it. They need more convincing. @aelluswamy @elonmusk @yunta_tsai pic.twitter.com/rOu72AePXJ
— Ian Bernardo (@frizulls) July 22, 2026
Responding to the statement, Elon Musk posted on X, saying, “Delaying the approval of FSD in France will cost lives.”
Delaying the approval of FSD in France will cost lives
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 22, 2026
Speeding and Driver Attention Concerns
Tabarot specifically called out two main technical issues. First, French regulators found that FSD use can lead to speeding as the software tries to match surrounding traffic flow, sometimes travelling up to 70 km/h in a 50 km/h zone. Second, the government believes the system fails to ensure enough driver attention in urban environments during complex maneuvers like roundabout navigation or lane changes.
Interestingly, while France worries about driver focus, Tesla is confident enough in FSD to relax driver monitoring and attention nags in recent builds.
The pushback on speeding isn’t entirely new. Sweden urged the EU to reject FSD earlier over similar speeding concerns stemming from a feature called Speed Offset. This toggle allows drivers to manually set a margin that lets the vehicle travel above the officially posted legal speed limit when traffic conditions allow.
European Approvals Hit a Wall
France’s refusal to approve FSD comes at a critical time for Tesla's global rollout. The Netherlands became the first European country to approve FSD back in April, creating a blueprint for other nations in the bloc. Wave-like approvals followed as Estonia gave the green light alongside launches in Lithuania and Denmark.
However, momentum has slowed down in recent weeks. While Belgium became the fifth European country to approve FSD in June and nations like Italy are actively considering bringing FSD to their roads, we haven’t seen a new EU nation sign off in well over a month. You can check out our full guide on Tesla’s FSD expansion history to see where the technology stands globally.
What Comes Next?
France isn’t shutting the door completely. Tabarot said technical discussions are underway with the Dutch regulators who originally brought FSD to Europe, other EU nations, and Tesla itself to review data and work through potential software tweaks. The version of FSD that’s available in Europe is already a bit different compared to what North American drivers have, so Tesla could simply pull the Speed Offset feature from the European build and increase driver monitoring to bring the software up to par for France (and Sweden).
With the European Commission set to vote on bloc-wide approval this October, Tesla will need to address these concerns to win over skeptical member states before the final vote.
