1. Home
  2. |Insights
  3. |Belgium Allows Fully Autonomous Vehicles To Be Tested on the Public Highway

Belgium Allows Fully Autonomous Vehicles To Be Tested on the Public Highway

Client Alert | 1 min read | 05.03.18

On May 1, 2018, Belgium became one of the first European countries to allow fully autonomous vehicles to be tested on the public highway without a driver.

Back in September 2016, the Belgian federal government issued a set of guidelines for organizations wishing to test driver assistance and partially or fully automated vehicle technologies on public roads or in other public places within Belgium. These guidelines list the minimum conditions and safety requirements which the organization responsible for the testing must comply with in order to guarantee road safety and minimize potential risks.

However, implementation of these guidelines required adaptation of the Belgian traffic code to allow for their unambiguous application. Therefore, on March 18, 2018, the Belgian federal government passed a royal decree introducing a new provision (article 59/1) which allows the federal Minister of Mobility to deviate from all provisions of the Belgian traffic code in the framework of experiments with automated vehicles. Such deviation is subject to conditions and must be for a limited time.

As a result of the adoption of this new provision, the federal Minister of Mobility can now allow the testing of fully autonomous vehicles on public roads without a driver, but the test must be supervised by an operator acting from a control room outside the car.

Any organization interested in carrying out such tests can file an application at the Ministry of Mobility.

Contacts

Insights

Client Alert | 2 min read | 07.15.26

CMMC Phase II Suspension Requires Reconsideration of Such Requirements in Solicitations

As discussed in more detail here, the U.S. Department of War (DoW) recently issued a memorandum (Memo 26-P-1023, dated July 13, 2026) directing the immediate suspension of Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Phase II requirements (Level I and II self assessments are still permitted). Significantly, the memo directs that “all pending and future CMMC implementation milestones across DoW solicitations and contracts are held in abeyance until further notice.” Moreover, the DoW issued a memorandum on implementing these requirements (available here), directing agencies to issue amendments removing CMMC Level 2 and 3 requirements from active solicitations “as soon as practicable.” Contractors should monitor the government’s compliance with this requirement and should be prepared, if needed, to file a bid protest to protect their rights....

View All Insights