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Guides / +2h home return rule

Driving home: the +1h / +2h rule and its pitfalls

Updated on 13 June 2026

Article 12 of Regulation 561/2006 allows, in certain cases, a slight excess of driving time to return home or to the depot before a weekly rest period. A welcome relief — but subject to strict conditions; otherwise it becomes an infringement again.

This is one of the most misunderstood rules. Many drivers believe they are entitled to "2 extra hours" without any conditions. The reality is more regulated: here is exactly what the text says.

1. What Article 12 allows

Regulation 561/2006, as amended by the Mobility Package (Regulation 2020/1054), allows the driver to exceed their daily and weekly driving time to reach their home or the employer's operating centre in order to take a weekly rest period there:

➕1hUp to 1 hour of excess driving to reach those locations and take a reduced weekly rest period (at least 24h).

➕2hUp to 2 hours of excess driving, provided an uninterrupted break of 30 minutes has been taken immediately before, to take a normal weekly rest period (at least 45h) there.

2. The conditions you must not forget

Road safety must not be compromised.

The excess is solely for reaching the home or operating centre to take a weekly rest period.

You must note the reason by hand (on the printed output or the tachograph record), at the latest upon arrival.

The excess driving time must be compensated by an equivalent rest period, attached to a rest, before the end of the 3rd following week.

3. Why TruckerMaster still alerts you

This derogation remains an excess. If even one condition is missing — no recorded reason, the 30-min break absent before the +2h, forgotten compensation, or excess beyond the limits — an inspection may reclassify it as an infringement. That is why the app continues to alert you: not to bother you, but to help you verify that you truly meet all the conditions and that you do not forget the compensation.

TruckerMaster alerts are provided for informational purposes only, to help you understand and remember your activity. They do not constitute legal proof. In case of doubt, refer to the official text and seek professional advice.

🏠 Keep track of your excesses and compensations

TruckerMaster reads your driver card and identifies the days on which you exceeded your driving time. You can clearly review these situations to check the conditions of Article 12 and not forget the compensatory rest.

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