Professional Drivers' Rights in Northern Ireland

Who this guide is for

People who drive for work in Northern Ireland: lorry (HGV) drivers, bus and coach drivers, and van and delivery drivers. It covers employed and agency drivers, and self-employed drivers where the rules say so.

What this guide does not cover

• Driving in England, Wales or Scotland: see the Great Britain guide (Professional Drivers' Rights in England, Wales and Scotland).
• Whether you are an employee, a worker or self-employed: use the worker or self-employed checker (Am I a Worker or Self-Employed in Northern Ireland?).
• Your general rights at work: use the employee rights checker (Your Rights as an Employee in Northern Ireland).
• Pay for travel time and the minimum wage: use the minimum wage guide (The Minimum Wage in the UK).
• Driving licences and medical rules: see Can I Appeal a DVA Licence Decision in Northern Ireland?.
• The detailed NI domestic rules for buses and coaches, and the full list of exempt vehicles. See the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) guides or ask the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA).

What the rules depend on

1. What are you driving? A goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes, a lighter goods vehicle or van, or a bus, coach or minibus.
2. Where do you drive? Only in Northern Ireland, into Great Britain, or into Ireland or another country.
3. Are you an employee or worker, or genuinely self-employed? Some limits cover self-employed drivers, some do not.
4. Is it about your hours, your vehicle or your pay? Hours and tachographs: the DVA. Safety: your employer, then HSENI. Pay and holiday: the LRA and the industrial tribunal.

"Which drivers' hours rules apply to me?"

Within Northern Ireland, either the NI domestic rules or the EU rules may apply. It depends on the vehicle and the type of driving.

The EU rules (Regulation (EC) 561/2006) cover most goods vehicles over 3.5 tonnes, including with a trailer, used within the UK or between the UK and EU, EEA and Swiss countries. Some vehicles are exempt.

The NI domestic rules apply to most goods vehicles that are exempt from the EU rules. Goods vehicles with a permissible maximum weight of 3.5 tonnes or less, or an unladen weight of 1.525 tonnes or less, are exempt from the NI domestic rules. So are drivers who always drive off the public road.

For buses and coaches, use the DfI guide "Rules on drivers' hours and tachographs: passenger vehicles in Northern Ireland and Europe".

"How long can I drive?"

EU rules: the daily, weekly and fortnightly driving limits, the 45-minute break after 4 hours 30 minutes of driving, and daily and weekly rest are set out in the DfI goods vehicles guide. Check it, or ask the DVA, for the limits that apply to your journeys.

NI domestic rules for goods vehicles:

• No more than 10 hours' driving in a working day.
• No more than 5 hours' continuous driving, then a 30-minute break.
• No more than 14 hours on duty in a working day. This does not apply on a day you do not drive, or for a whole week in which you drive no more than 4 hours each day.
• 10 hours' rest in a row in any 24 hours.

"What are my working time limits?"

If you drive under the EU or AETR rules, you normally also have to keep to the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005. They also apply to self-employed drivers based in the UK who do this kind of driving.

• No more than 60 hours' working time in any one week, including overtime.
• An average of no more than 48 hours a week over the reference period.
• If you do night work, no more than 10 hours' work in any 24 hours. Night is midnight to 4am for goods vehicles and 1am to 5am for passenger vehicles.
• No more than 6 hours' work without a break. A break of at least 30 minutes if you work more than 6 and up to 9 hours, and at least 45 minutes if you work more than 9 hours. Breaks can be split into periods of at least 15 minutes.

Drivers covered by the 2005 regulations still get 5.6 weeks' paid annual leave under the Working Time Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016.

Drivers under the NI domestic rules are covered by four provisions of the Working Time Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016.

Van and delivery drivers outside the drivers' hours rules who are workers are covered by the Working Time Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016. If you drive for a delivery or transport company, you are a "mobile worker": instead of 11 hours' daily rest, 24 hours' weekly rest and a 20-minute break, you are entitled to "adequate rest". If you drive a van for another kind of business, you get 11 hours' rest in each 24 hours, 24 hours' rest in each 7 days, and a 20-minute break when you work more than 6 hours.

"What about tachographs?"

Goods vehicles over 3.5 tonnes (including any trailer) and passenger vehicles with more than 9 seats (including the driver's) generally need a tachograph. If you drive an in-scope vehicle with a digital or smart tachograph, you must use your own driver card. Never use anyone else's.

• You must record your whole working day. Make manual entries for work done away from the vehicle.
• From 31 December 2024, 56 days of records must be available at the roadside for international journeys.
• The DVA checks up to 25,000 tachograph records a year.

Under NI domestic rules you keep a weekly record sheet where the vehicle needs an operator licence and you drive more than 4 hours that day, or you go more than 50km from base. Some groups are exempt.

"Can I refuse to drive?"

If you reasonably believe there is serious and imminent danger, for example from a dangerous vehicle, you are protected from being treated worse for refusing to drive it. See the refusing unsafe work guide (Refusing Unsafe Work in Northern Ireland). Reporting wrongdoing can also be whistleblowing: see Whistleblowing at Work in Northern Ireland.

"Who gets fined, me or the company?"

The rules place duties on drivers, operators and others in the supply chain, such as consignors, freight forwarders and driver agencies. The DVA enforces the drivers' hours and tachograph rules. This guide does not set out penalty amounts in Northern Ireland: ask the DVA.

Deadlines you must meet

• Most industrial tribunal claims, including unfair dismissal: 3 months less 1 day. The 6-month time limit that starts in Great Britain on 1 October 2026 does not apply to these claims in Northern Ireland.
• Early conciliation: tell the LRA within your time limit.
• Your exact date depends on your facts. See our tribunal deadline guide.

Money figures

• Minimum wage from 1 April 2026 (same across the UK): £12.71 an hour at 21 and over, £10.85 at 18 to 20, £8.00 under 18 and for apprentices.

Traps

• Do not use the GOV.UK Great Britain domestic rules in Northern Ireland. The NI domestic duty limit is 14 hours, not 11.
• The 48-hour average under the 2005 regulations is separate from the drivers' hours limits. You must meet both.
• Vans at or under 3.5 tonnes are outside the NI domestic drivers' hours rules, but the working time rules still apply if you are a worker (if you drive for a delivery or transport company, you get "adequate rest" instead of the set daily rest, weekly rest and breaks).
• There is no Acas early conciliation in Northern Ireland. Use the LRA.
• Using someone else's driver card is never allowed.