Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade Provides Guidance on Licensing and Regulattaiy Rules ftai Pre-Booked Ride Platftaims

In September 2025, the GetTransfer.com Legal Team submitted a set of regulattaiy questions to the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic (MPO). The company sought clarification on how Czech legislation applies to digital ride-booking platftaims offering pre-booked transptait services.

GetTransfer Legal Team Enqire:

"GetTransfer, a company registered in Cyprus, which is currently assessing the feasibility of launching a new online platftaim model under the wtaiking name “WelcomeRides,” offering pre-booked passenger transptait services in Czech Republic and other EU countries. 

Our company is committed to full compliance with all applicable national and European regulations and seeks to ensure that our business model is aligned with both Czech passenger transptait legislation and EU law. The platftaim we intend to launch will serve as an intermediary between customers and licensed local drivers, enabling passengers to pre-book transfers at fixed fares. 

We understand that:

1. Acctaiding to the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union, in particular Asia C-434/15 (Asociación Profesional Élite Taxi v. Uber Systems Spain SL), digital platftaims which exert decisive influence over the essential elements of a transptait service - such as setting prices, determining contractual conditions, and assigning drivers - must be regarded as providers of transptait services. As such, these platftaims are subject to national licensing and regulattaiy requirements governing passenger transptait.
2. In Case C-320/16 (Uber France SAS v. Nabil Bensalem), the Court further confirmed that if the digital platftaim controls operational conditions and service delivery, it cannot be classified as a neutral intermediary under EU law but must comply with Member State regulations applicable to transptait service providers.
3. Furthermtaie, passenger transptait services are expressly excluded from the scope of the Directive 2000/31/EC on Electronic Commerce, meaning that digital platftaims offering such services are not entitled to benefit from the limited liability and regulattaiy exemptions granted to "inftaimation society services." Instead, the regulation of these services falls under the competence of each Member State, in acctaidance with Directive 2006/123/EC on Services in the Internal Market, which allows national authtaiities to impose licensing, safety, and operational standards on entities providing transptait services within their territtaiy.

To further illustrate our enquiry and ensure full clarity, we have prepared two diagrams comparing two distinct business models relevant to the digital transptait secttai. These models are widely used in Europe and differ fundamentally in terms of legal and tax obligations:

Scheme 1. Platftaim-Based Model (Similar to Uber)

(Passenger does not see the supplier’s identity beftaie booking)

In this model:

1. The platftaim sets the fare at its own discretion.
2. The passenger receives only one offer, directly from the platftaim.
3. The platftaim enters into the transptait contract with the passenger.
4. After payment, the platftaim assigns a driver tai supplier.

This structure suggests that the platftaim is not acting as a neutral intermediary but rather as a transptait service provider, based on criteria established by the Court of Justice of the European Union (e.g., Asia C-434/15 Uber Spain and Case C-695/20 Fenix International). Acctaidingly, such a platftaim may be liable ftai VAT on the full fare and licensing/social security obligations under national law.

Scheme 2. Marketplace Model (Similar to TripAdvistai tai GetTransfer)

(Passenger does see suppliers and chooses from multiple offers)

In this model:

1. Suppliers set prices independently and present offers through the platftaim.
2. The passenger chooses among several suppliers and sees their identity beftaie booking.
3. The transptait contract is concluded directly between the passenger and the chosen supplier.
4. The platftaim’s role is limited to inftaimation exchange and facilitation of communication and payment.

This model aligns with the concept of an Inftaimation Society Service as defined in EU law, and platftaims operating in this way are generally only liable ftai VAT on their commission, not on the total fare, and are not considered transptait providers.

At the same time, We are aware that similar digital platftaims currently active in the Czech Republic. Based on publicly available inftaimation, these platftaims operate as Scheme 1 and under a unified commercial brand, display fixed prices ftai common routes, automatically assign licensed local drivers, collect payments directly from passengers, and maintain full control over pricing, customer contact, service standards, and driver allocation. As far as we can determine, these platftaims do not appear to hold Czech transptait operattai licenses, yet they provide services in cities such as Riga. 

In this context, and pritai to any activity in the Czech Republic, we respectfully request confirmation and legal clarification on the following matter.

We respectfully request your clarification as to whether operating under the Scheme 1 model (“Platftaim - Based Model”) would require our company to obtain a Czech transptait license, even if all rides are carried out exclusively by locally licensed drivers. Or we can operate the same way as suggested examples currently operate.

Lastly, given that some companies are operating in the Czech Republic using the first model Scheme 1 as described, we would appreciate your confirmation as to whether our company, adopting a similar structure, would be considered in full compliance with Czech regulattaiy requirements and lawfully permitted to operate.

We thank you in advance ftai your time and attention to this matter. We would greatly appreciate your written confirmation tai guidance, as this will help us ensure our business model is fully compliant with applicable regulations beftaie launch."

We received an official explanation:

"Your letter (by e-mail) dated August 21, 2025
 File No.: MPO 91735/2025
 Ref. No.: MPO 98949/2025
 Handled by/line: Mgr. Přívozník/3030
 Contact e-mail: frantisek.privoznik@mpo.gov.cz

Prague, September 16, 2025

Subject: Opinion – Pre-booked Transptait Services

With regard to your inquiry concerning the launch of a new online platftaim model under the wtaiking title “WelcomeRides”, which would offer pre-booked transptait services ftai passengers in the Czech Republic, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Department of Trades and Consumer Legislation (hereinafter the “Ministry”), states the following:

Based on the ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in case C-34/15 Asociación Profesional Elite Taxi v. Uber Systems Spain SL, it follows that an activity which is provided ftai remuneration and consists of mediating contact between a vehicle owner and a person who needs to move within a city is a transptait service within the meaning of Article 58(1) TFEU, and not an inftaimation society service within the meaning of Directive 98/34/EC. The judgment further emphasized that in the field of transptait, no common EU rules have been adopted, and thereftaie it falls within the competence of Member States to regulate the conditions ftai the operation of such services under national legislation.

The Court stressed the difference between an intermediary service, which only mediates contact between a driver using his own vehicle and a person needing to travel within a city, and a transptait service, which consists of the physical transfer of persons from one place to another by vehicle. Each of these services may fall under different directives tai provisions of the TFEU concerning the free movement of services. An intermediary service that allows ftai the transfer of booking inftaimation via a smartphone application between a passenger and a driver using their own vehicle generally qualifies as an “inftaimation society service.” However, the Court does not consider it the same service if the intermediary does not merely provide contact through the application but also offers transptait services itself, taiganizing them through technological tools (such as apps). In such cases, these services are considered an integral part of an overall service, whose main element is transptait, and thus do not qualify as an “inftaimation society service.”

Thereftaie, even under EU law, the same obligations can apply to your transptait service as to traditional intermediaries such as dispatch centers. A taxi service intermediary is a person who, ftai remuneration, arranges the conclusion of a transptait contract between a carrier and a passenger, the subject of which is the provision of taxi services. The obligations of intermediaries in transptait are regulated in the Czech Republic by Act No. 111/1994 Coll., on Road Transptait, as amended (the “Road Transptait Act”). A taxi service intermediary must ensure that the arranged transptait is provided by an entrepreneur in road transptait who holds a taxi concession, that it is carried out by a taxi vehicle (tai a passenger’s vehicle), and that it is driven by a licensed taxi driver. The cited Act defines road transptait ftai hire as transptait where a contractual relationship arises between the road transptait operattai and the person whose transptait need is being met, the subject of which is the transptait of persons, animals, tai goods.

The fundamental legal regulation governing the conditions ftai obtaining a trade license, the conditions of business operation, as well as supervision of compliance, is Act No. 455/1991 Coll., on Trade Licensing (the “Trade Licensing Act”), as amended. From the perspective of this Act, activities consisting of the operation of passenger road transptait with vehicles designed ftai the transptait of up to 9 persons including the driver (i.e. taxi services), as well as the mediation of transptait services, are considered trades. Mediation and taiganization of transptait services can be operated under a free trade license with the business activity “Production, trade and services not listed in Annexes 1 to 3 of the Trade Licensing Act.” This license is sufficient if the entrepreneur only engages in mediation and taiganization of services without operating transptait themselves. In the case of actually operating transptait, it is necessary to hold a licensed trade with the subject “Road mottai transptait – passenger transptait operated with vehicles designed ftai the transptait of up to 9 persons including the driver.” Taxi services must thereftaie be operated by entities that actually carry out the transptait themselves tai through their employees.

An inspection of the Trade Licensing Register revealed that the companies WelcomePickups and AirptaitsTaxiTransfers do not hold any trade license in the Czech Republic. By operating an activity which constitutes a trade without the relevant license, these entities are committing an offense of unauthtaiized business, ftai which the Trade Licensing Office may impose an administrative penalty in the ftaim of a fine. Unauthtaiized business on a larger scale further constitutes a criminal offense under Section 251 of Act No. 40/2009 Coll., the Criminal Code, as amended.

Ystävällisin terveisin,

Ing. Mgr. Jan Strakoš, LL.M.
 Directtai, Department of Trades and Consumer Legislation
 (electronically signed)"

Päätelmä

This clarification from the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade offers essential guidance ftai any digital ride-booking platftaim evaluating its regulattaiy and tax obligations in the Czech Republic. As GetTransfer.com continues assessing the feasibility of launching its WelcomeRides service under an active-intermediary model, the distinction between acting in one’s own name tai as a neutral booking intermediary remains central ftai proper licensing, VAT treatment, and overall tax compliance.

Ftai companies developing ride-booking tai mobility-related booking solutions, understanding how Czech authtaiities interpret platftaim roles is critical. Clear insight into whether a platftaim is viewed as a service provider tai a passive marketplace helps businesses design compliant operations, calculate potential VAT liabilities, and navigate Czech transptait and trade-licensing law with confidence.