NZTA grants temporary licence exemption for electric trucks up to 7500kg

Drivers with a Class 1 licence will now be able to legally operate heavier electric trucks under a new exemption announced by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA).

The Land Transport (Driver Licensing) Rule 1999: Drivers of Electric Trucks (up to 7,500kgs) Exemption Notice 2025 came into effect from February 28.

The temporary exemption allows Class 1 licence holders — who would typically be limited to vehicles with a gross laden weight (GLW) of up to 6000kg — to drive electric trucks up to 7,500kg.

The notice, signed by land transport director Brent Alderton, says the change is due to the additional weight of batteries in electric vehicles, which can push an electric truck over the usual Class 1 threshold.

“The land transport system is facing a challenge between the availability of cost efficient heavier electric vehicles and our current driver licensing system,” NZTA says.

“Keeping battery electric trucks below the 6000kg weight threshold for driver licence Class 1, greatly reduces payload due to the weight of the batteries. Achieving the equivalent payload in a battery electric truck requires the driver to move up to a Class 2 licence, creating a barrier in the uptake of BEVs.

“These BEVs require a higher driver licence class and may sit within the work time and logbook regime, making more sustainable and lower emission commercial transport options less attractive. This imposes compliance costs on industry for no safety benefit,” it says.

To qualify under the exemption, electric trucks must be within the same model range of a diesel equivalent, having the same braking system and carrying the batteries integrated within the chassis. The electric variant must not exceed the dimensions of the largest diesel version in the up to 6,000kg range.

Eligible trucks must also include:

• Regenerative braking
• Automatic emergency braking
• Electronic stability control
• Lane departure warning or lane keep assist
• Batteries integrated as low as possible in the chassis

NZTA says the temporary exemption is intended to support the transition to cleaner transport while the Government considers longer-term licensing changes to accommodate the growing demand for electric trucks.

“The purpose of this class exemption is to improve commercial operators’ access to BEVs with improved safety features and provides the sector an opportunity to make gains in the decarbonisation of their fleet whilst the Government considers the growing demand for BEVs in the land transport system.”

The notice expires on February 28, 2028, and may be amended, replaced, or revoked under the act.