The EC regulation 561/2006 is applied to road transport:
- of goods when the maximum authorised weight of the vehicles, including any trailers or semi-trailers, is over 3.5 tons
- of passengers in vehicles which have been manufactured or adapted permanently for transporting more than nine persons, including the driver, and are intended for that purpose.
Exceptions to the scope of application of the EC Regulations 561/2006 and 3821/85 (that is to say, they are not required to comply with rest and driving periods, nor to install the control device or tachograph) are the following:
a) vehicles designed for passenger transport in scheduled services when the route of the service in question does not exceed 50 kilometres;
b) vehicles with a maximum authorised speed of less than 40 km/h;
c) vehicles that have been acquired or rented without a driver by the armed forces, the civil defence, the fire services or the forces responsible for maintaining law and order, when the transport is carried out as a result of the functions that have been assigned to these bodies and which are considered to form part of their responsibility;
d) vehicles, including vehicles used for non-commercial transportation of humanitarian aid, used in emergency situations or for rescue missions;
e) special vehicles used for medical purposes;
f) vehicles specialising in repairing breakdowns within a radius of action of 100 kilometres of their operational centre;
g) vehicles undergoing road testing for the purposes of technical improvement, repair or maintenance, and new or remodelled vehicles which have not yet been officially approved for driving;
h) vehicles or groups of vehicles with a maximum authorised weight of less than 7.5 tons used for non-commercial transport of goods;
i) commercial vehicles that are considered historical according to the legislation of the member state where they operate, and which are used for non-commercial transport of passengers or goods.
In addition to these exceptions, ROYAL DECREE 640/2007 of 18 May, which establishes exceptions to the obligatory nature of the regulations for driving and rest times and the use of tachographs in road transport, under the authorisation established in articles 3.2 of Regulation (EEC) no. 3821/85 and 13.1 of Regulation (EEC) no. 61/2006, rules that compliance with the obligations established in the above-mentioned Regulation regarding the installation and use of tachographs and driving and rest times for drivers will not be obligatory for the following types of transport:
a) Official transport, as defined in article 105 of Act 16/1987 of 30 July, regarding Overland Transport Planning.
b) Transport whose object is to collect and deliver postal remittances within the framework of the universal postal service by providers of said service, provided that the maximum authorised weight of the vehicle used, including any trailers and semi-trailers, is under 7.5 tons; that the transport takes place entirely within a radius of 50 kilometres of the operational centre of the company owning or leasing the vehicle; and that driving the vehicle does not constitute the primary activity of the driver, who must hold the professional category corresponding to the collection and delivery of postal correspondence.
c) Transport in vehicles exclusively dedicated to providing those services corresponding to sewer systems, flood protection, water supply, maintenance of gas and electricity networks, road maintenance and conservation, home refuse collection, telegraphy, telephony, radio and television broadcasting, and detection of radio or television emitters or receivers.
d) Transport for the elimination of urban waste entirely within a radius of 50 kilometres of the operational centre of the company owning or leasing the vehicle.
e) Goods transport of a private and complementary nature within the framework of the particular activity of companies engaged in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, livestock or fisheries, entirely within a radius of 50 kilometres of the company's operational centre.
f) Transport of a private and complementary nature using agricultural or forestry tractors in order to engage in any agricultural or forestry activity within a radius of 100 kilometres of the operational centre of the company owning or leasing the vehicle.
g) Transport for collecting milk from farms, or used for the transfer of milk churns or milk products intended for cattle-feed, provided that this takes place entirely within a radius of 100 kilometres of the operational centre of the company owning or leasing the vehicle.
h) Transport of live animals between farms and local markets, between markets and local slaughterhouses, or between farms and local slaughterhouses, provided that the distance in a straight line between the origin and the destination is no more than 50 kilometres.
i) Transport of a private and complementary nature of circus or fairground equipment in vehicles especially adapted for that purpose.
j) Transfer of moveable exhibitions installed on board vehicles especially adapted and equipped for that purpose, and whose primary objective is for educational use when the vehicle is stationary.
k) Transport of funds or objects of value in vehicles especially adapted and equipped for that purpose.
l) Transport during instruction in courses designed for teaching how to drive or for obtaining a driving license or professional driving certificate in vehicles which are especially equipped for this purpose, without prejudice to the stipulations of Royal Decree 772/1997 of 30 May, approving the general Regulation of Drivers and of Royal Decree 1295/2003 of 17 October, approving the Regulation governing private driving schools.
m) Goods transport using vehicles powered by electricity or natural or liquid gas, with a maximum authorised weight, including any trailers and semi-trailers, of under 7.5 tons, provided that this takes place entirely within a radius of 50 kilometres of the operational centre of the company owning or leasing the vehicle.
n) Transport of a private and complementary nature for the purpose of transferring material, equipment or machinery used by the driver in the exercise of his or her profession, provided that the maximum authorised weight of the vehicle used, including any trailers and semi-trailers, is under 7.5 tons; that the transport takes place entirely within a radius of 50 kilometres of the operational centre of the company owning or leasing the vehicle; and that driving the vehicle does not constitute the primary activity of the driver.
o) Transport by vehicles exclusively dedicated to providing services which take place entirely within closed premises intended for activities other than road transport, such as ports, airports and railway stations.
p) Transport which takes place entirely on islands with a surface area of less than 1,500 square kilometres and which are not joined to the rest of the Spanish territory by a bridge, ford or tunnel open to motor vehicles.
