Stricter rules for taxi platforms: payments to be required to obligatorily go through banks of Moldova

The parliament has approved, in first reading, a draft law that will require taxi platforms to process payments exclusively through licensed financial institutions of Moldova. The initiative was supported by 63 MPs and aims to increase financial transparency in the road passengers’ transport sector.

The draft was developed by MPs Marina Morozova and Alexandr Trubca from the Action and Solidarity Party’s (PAS) faction and targets the prevention of situations in which economic operators bypass the national financial system, by using external channels to process payments.

The authors say that current practices make it difficult to monitor financial flows, assess tax evasion risks and correctly calculate the value added tax (VAT) for intermediation services provided by taxi platforms.

In addition to the requirement to process payments through licensed banks and financial institutions, the draft also introduces tougher measures to combat the use of vehicles that are not registered in the Road Transport Operators Register (ROTR).

“Through the proposed amendments, it is suggested to tighten the sanctioning conditions for platforms that allow the use of cars not registered in the ROTR to provide services through platforms or management systems,” the authors say in the explanatory note to the legislative initiative.

Thus, if at least five cases of such cars being admitted into the system are identified in a 12‑month period, the platform’s activity may be suspended.

Besides, platform administrators will be required to submit a declaration on their own responsibility confirming the exclusive use of vehicles registered in the ROTR.

The government is to develop the procedure for suspending and resuming the activity of electronic management platforms on the territory of Moldova. After final adoption, the new provisions will enter into force 60 days after publication in the Official Journal.