Much of the industry is facing a shortage of drivers. At the same time, many countries lack formalised qualification frameworks as well as professional driver training standards and certification. What’s being done to tackle these two interlinked challenges?
The shortage of professional drivers is no longer a temporary labour market problem.
IRU’s latest research estimates that around 2.9 million truck driver positions are unfilled globally, equivalent to 11% of the workforce. In Europe alone, the shortage reached 13% in 2025, representing 502,000 unfilled positions.
The consequences are already visible: two-thirds of European operators report turning down new contracts because they cannot find enough drivers.
Recruitment at home is not enough
The first response must remain attracting more people locally.
That means making the profession more accessible. It means attracting more women and young people. It also means improving working conditions, training, parking facilities and work-life balance. But the demographic gap is too large for these measures to work alone.
Europe’s truck driver workforce has an average age of 48. Only 5% of drivers are aged 24 or under. Around 20% of the current workforce is expected to retire over the next five years.
Mobility needs a pathway
Europe is already relying on drivers from abroad.
Nearly one in three truck drivers reported by surveyed EU operators are of foreign origin. Among those whose origin was identified, 37% are from outside the EU.
The question is therefore not whether international recruitment will take place; it is how to make it work properly.
Hiring a professional driver across borders is more complicated than simply matching a worker with an employer.
Driving licences may not be recognised. Professional qualifications are often not equivalent, requiring extensive driver training to align with EU requirements. Visa and work permit procedures can be complex and lengthy. Employers need confidence that drivers meet the required professional standards and trust with partners abroad to establish sustainable driver mobility pathways.
Drivers, meanwhile, need a transparent route into legitimate employment abroad.
That is why mobility needs to be structured from the outset.
Legal pathways can connect recruitment with recognised skills, training, certification, employment and integration, while embedding worker protection throughout the process.
It’s also about raising standards for drivers outside the EU with long-lasting, formalised qualification frameworks as well as professional driver training standards and certification.
IRU is working with governments, EU institutions and industry partners to develop precisely these kinds of socially compliant pathways and raise training standards and certification outside the EU.
First, understand the barriers
One of the foundations for this work is the STEER2EU project.
Led by IRU at the request of the European Commission, the study examined the practical challenges involved in employing non-EU truck and bus drivers. It covered 20 non-EU countries.
STEER2EU identified gaps in professional qualifications and mapped the legal and administrative barriers faced by both drivers and EU operators.
The objective was to provide evidence for future policy reform rather than simply assume that international recruitment could be expanded under existing systems.
Then, turn policy into practice
The next step is moving from analysis to real mobility corridors.
IRU is now involved in Skilled Driver Mobility for Europe II (SDM4EU II)v, which is testing legal mobility pathways between Morocco and Italy as well as between Egypt and Romania.
The project aims to train professional drivers in Egypt and Morocco.
Drivers who wish to do so will then be supported in taking up employment with operators in Italy and Romania under ethical recruitment principles.
SDM4EU II will also strengthen the capacities of training teams, helping build longer-term capacity in the countries of origin.
The project has a deliberately practical design.
Drivers move through candidate selection, technical and language training, employer matching, legal mobility, integration support and ultimately employment and retention.
The ambition goes beyond two corridors: the experience will feed into a model that can be adapted and replicated for future driver mobility partnerships.
SDM4EU II is co-funded by the EU and contracted by the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) through the Migration Partnership Facility (MPF). It is coordinated by GOPA PACE, with AASTMT, Soleterre and the ICAR Foundation as co-beneficiaries. IRU is contributing as a technical partner responsible for training standards and advocacy.
It’s a win-win
Skilled driver mobility is not simply about moving labour from one country to another. It should address needs on both sides.
For partner countries, investment in training strengthens local skills and employment prospects. Not every person who receives training needs to move abroad. Stronger training institutions leave lasting capacity at home.
For countries facing shortages, it enlarges the pool of qualified professional drivers and helps operators keep trucks, buses and coaches moving.
Done well, driver mobility schemes can turn two labour market challenges into one shared opportunity.
The contents of this article are the sole responsibility of IRU and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or ICMPD.
