--- title: "Moldova's Parliament will enforce stricter rules for taxi platforms, allowing payments only through banks" url: https://radiomoldova.md/p/87459/moldova-s-parliament-will-enforce-stricter-rules-for-taxi-platforms-allowing-payments-only-through-banks published: 2026-10-16T18:00:00Z language: en author: "Liubomir Guțu" section: "Social" source: radiomoldova.md --- # Moldova's Parliament will enforce stricter rules for taxi platforms, allowing payments only through banks > Payments for taxi services will be processed exclusively through licensed banks in the Republic of Moldova. Next week, Parliament is set to vote—in the second reading—on amendments that will impose stricter rules for financial transactions within the taxi sector, announced Marina Morozova, a Member of Parliament for the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) and Vice-Chair of the Committee on Social Protection, Health, and Family. ![](https://storage.radiomoldova.md/images/49407767-c68e-41ed-aea6-b205f279a283.jpg) Payments for taxi services will be processed exclusively through licensed banks in the Republic of Moldova. Next week, Parliament is set to vote—in the second reading—on amendments that will impose stricter rules for financial transactions within the taxi sector, announced Marina Morozova, a Member of Parliament for the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) and Vice-Chair of the Committee on Social Protection, Health, and Family. The MP said the new provisions aim to ensure the legality, transparency, and proper taxation of every leu earned by individuals working in the taxi sector. The new regulations will come into effect 30 days after their adoption and stipulate severe penalties for non-compliant platforms, including the potential suspension of their operations. This legislative initiative complements a package of reforms promoted in recent years to combat tax evasion in the taxi industry. Measures already implemented include: - Mandatory legal registration of all digital platforms within the Republic of Moldova. - Allowing only vehicles registered in the Register of Road Transport Operators—managed by the National Agency for Road Transport (ANTA)—to connect to these applications. - Quarterly reporting to ANTA of a complete list of drivers and vehicles that have completed at least one trip. - Stricter fines for violations of the regulatory framework. According to Marina Morozova, the application of these mechanisms has already yielded tangible results: an increase in the number of taxpayers declaring their income, a rise in the number of VAT-registered entities, and higher tax revenues collected for the state budget. The Russian group Yandex, which dominates the taxi service market in the Republic of Moldova, generated over 7 million euros in a single year, according to a judicial document obtained by Radio Free Europe. In early October, the firm made its first payment to the Moldovan state budget—not in the form of taxes, but as a fine of nearly 40,000 euros, which was paid on October 5 from the United Arab Emirates. In May 2026, the same company received a 100-million-euro fine in the Netherlands—where it is headquartered—for storing data belonging to customers and drivers from Norway and Finland on servers located in Russia. On October 12, during a TV8 show, Parliament Speaker Igor Grosu acknowledged that the authorities had mistaken Yandex. He admitted that the firm being registered in the Netherlands does not necessarily mean the servers containing user data are also located there. Yandex Go does not provide transport services directly; instead, it merely offers the platform through which rides are booked. Local companies pay a standard commission of 12% of the ride value—an amount subject to VAT on the import of services. In 2025, the VAT paid on services imported from Yandex exceeded 12 million lei. Separately, operators across the entire taxi sector—including those using other platforms—contributed approximately 216 million lei to the state budget in the form of taxes and contributions, an increase of 42% compared to 2024. *** It should be noted that Yandex, often dubbed "the Google of Russia," is one of the largest Russian technology groups. The company has faced international criticism over alleged ties to the Kremlin and concerns regarding the independence of its services. In 2024, its operations in Russia and certain foreign markets were sold to a consortium of Russian investors in a deal valued at approximately $5.4 billion. More recently, Ukrainian attacks on its data centers in Russia caused service disruptions—including to taxi apps—in other countries, among them the Republic of Moldova.