Quota benefits: self-employed taxi drivers may be allowed to import cars
State Duma deputies propose to introduce quotas that will allow self-employed taxi drivers to work on cars that are not included in the list of localized taxi models. The initiative is a step in the right direction, but in its current form, the bill does not address issues with self—employed taxi drivers, industry representatives say. For such drivers, it is possible to cancel the requirements for localization of cars altogether or to postpone their introduction, experts believe. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
Localization by a quarter
Some self-employed taxi drivers may be allowed to work in vehicles that do not meet localization requirements. The relevant bill has been submitted to the State Duma for consideration. According to the amendments to the law "On the organization of passenger and Baggage transportation by passenger taxi in the Russian Federation," it is proposed to introduce a quota of 25% of the total number of entries in the regional taxi registry for individuals, allowing them to operate on non-localized models. It is assumed that the quota will be valid until 2033.
According to the authors of the amendments, the proposed mechanism will adapt the requirements of the law on the localization of taxi cars to current realities and ensure a gradual renewal of the fleet.
"Under current conditions and with a limited range of new vehicles that fully meet the established localization criteria, the purchase and renewal of vehicles will prove financially impossible for the majority of the self-employed. This, in turn, will effectively exclude them from the legal market segment, since it will be impossible to enter information about vehicles that do not comply with the requirements of the law into the federal state Taxi information system, which means that orders cannot be received through passenger taxi ordering services," the explanatory note to the bill says.
As follows from the accompanying documents to the amendments, at present it is the self-employed who are the main "entities engaged in passenger and baggage transportation by passenger taxi" in small and medium-sized settlements. In total, about 540 thousand taxi drivers have this status in the country, for whom such a part-time job brings, on average, an additional monthly income of 45 thousand rubles. Self-employed citizens who use their own cars that do not meet localization requirements are effectively deprived of the opportunity to earn money in this area, the authors of the document emphasize. According to the HSE, this will lead to a decrease in tax revenues to the budget in the amount of 25.41 billion rubles per year, they note.
"A significant number of citizens, for whom employment in a taxi is an important source of income, face limited economic opportunities, which, in fact, creates excessive administrative and financial obstacles to the development of this segment of employment. Such restrictions will lead to the fact that the implementation of relevant activities for the self—employed will become economically impractical (according to the Analytical Center under the Government of the Russian Federation, the amount of lost income for drivers to bring the current taxi fleet in line with the law on localization of cars in taxis will amount to 289 billion rubles), "- follows from the explanatory note to the document.
The authors of the bill note that the proposed quota will ensure the gradual and consistent adaptation of the industry to the introduction of requirements for the localization of taxi cars. At the same time, a balance is maintained between the tasks of developing the domestic automotive industry and the sustainable functioning of the taxi transportation market, including in small and medium-sized settlements, they emphasize.
A compromise solution
In general, the deputies' proposals are a step in the right direction, said Irina Zaripova, chairman of the Public Council for Taxi Development. The current localization rule does not reflect the real structure of the market and can lead to serious consequences for the availability of legal transportation and the preservation of jobs, she notes. However, according to the expert, the proposed quota of 25% is insufficient and creates a bottleneck effect when the development of the industry is artificially restrained.
— In large regions where the number of self-employed is already significant, this quota will be noticeable, but where the process of taxi legalization is still actively underway, it will not actually provide an incentive for the growth of registered carriers. So, as of October of this year, in some regions of the federation, less than 100 cars are listed in the taxi registry — for example, in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug and the Republic of Ingushetia. In others, there are several hundred (Kherson region, Karachay-Cherkess Republic). For comparison, more than 81 thousand taxi cars are registered in the Krasnodar Territory. Obviously, a single quota bar cannot be a universal solution for such regions of different scales," Irina Zaripova told Izvestia.
In addition, she believes that the very logic of quotas requires adjustments. The proposed scheme, which fixes 25% of the total number of vehicles in the registry, will lead to an increase in the proportion of non-localized vehicles as the registries themselves grow. According to Irina Zaripova, it would be more logical to do the opposite: initially, set a wider quota, for example, 80%, to give the market time to adapt and update its fleet.
— The proposed bill does not take into account the issue of leasing cars. In practice, many cars purchased specifically for taxi work are removed from the registers when the owner changes without the possibility of return. We consider it necessary to supplement the document with a norm allowing the return to the register of leased cars that have lost registration for formal reasons, but actually continue to be used for transportation," added the chairman of the Public Council for Taxi Development.
Based on the regulations and working procedures of the State Duma and the Federation Council, it is unlikely that the proposed amendments will be adopted before March 1, 2026, the date of entry into force of the requirements for the localization of taxi cars, believes Stanislav Shvagerus, head of the competence center of the International Eurasian Taxi Forum.
— In itself, the appearance of such a bill is very positive news. She says that the government sees possible problems in the industry and is trying to work out ways to solve them," he said.
The National Taxi Council believes that the quota mechanism will help minimize the negative effect on the taxi industry and preserve the possibility of new carriers entering private cars.
"However, it is necessary to expand the quota for the self—employed to at least 50%, so that in each region at least half of all cars in the regional taxi registry by 2033 can be non—localized if they are registered as self-employed drivers," the council's press service said.
The National Automobile Union has repeatedly warned that the introduction of localization requirements without a transition period will lead to a massive withdrawal of self-employed drivers from the market and, as a result, an increase in transportation prices, recalls Anton Shaparin, NAS Vice President. These drivers would have gone into "bombardment," and many years of work to "whitewash" the industry would have been largely devalued, he notes.
— The quota mechanism, which will operate until 2033, will enable people to maintain access to legal transportation, and the taxi industry to systematically update its fleet. Automakers will also benefit from the reform: the transition period will allow factories to plan the production of localized models, increase capacity and improve consumer characteristics without pressure and shortages," said Anton Shaparin.
He believes that the bill introduces a compromise mechanism. On the one hand, he supports the development strategy of the Russian automotive industry, on the other hand, he does not destroy the taxi market and does not infringe on the economic opportunities of citizens, leaving the opportunity to work legally.
— We consider the bill to be a constructive step that will help smooth out the transition period for the taxi market. This measure is aimed at maintaining a balance between the tasks of switching to cars whose production is localized, as well as maintaining the stability of the current taxi market in regions where there may not yet be a financial opportunity to purchase a new car, the press service of the Voyah and Evolute brands (included in the list of localized taxi models, developed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade).
Representatives of the domestic automaker (Voyah and Evolve are produced in the Lipetsk region) noted that the proposed approach is designed to prevent a shortage of drivers in remote or economically less developed regions, allowing them to continue working on imported used cars.
Quotas are not a panacea
Taxi companies and members of public organizations representing the interests of the self-employed reacted ambiguously to the deputies' proposal.
Yandex Taxi supports the initiative of the parliamentarians, a representative of the company told Izvestia.
— Now it is important to keep part-time drivers in the industry, this will help avoid an outflow of drivers, loss of income and reduced availability of taxi services in the regions, — he said.
A completely different point of view is held in Maxim taxi.
— Quotas are an archaism that, as an instrument of direct administrative restriction of the free market, can only harm the regulated sphere of activity. It is unclear on the basis of which methodology the federal agency, which does not have complete statistics in the field of passenger passenger transportation, will be able to determine quotas for regional markets, the company told Izvestia, recalling that the Ministry of Transport does not have regional offices and control in the taxi sector is carried out by regional authorized bodies.
The company believes that self-employed people working in private cars should be completely removed from the scope of the taxi localization rule, emphasizing that leasing and government business support programs are not available to individuals. Currently, according to Maxim, the share of self-employed people in the consolidated register of passenger taxi carriers is about 66%: these are 200,899 vehicles, about 24% of the total industry volume.
— Everything depends on the proposed limit. This means that further market growth and legalization of carriers will be impossible," the company noted. — The quota does not "beat" even with existing registries. Outside of megacities, in regional registries, the share of self—employed cars is often comparable or much higher than that of legal carriers. Quotas, if introduced, will destroy small regional taxi markets, according to Maxim Taxi.
As an example, the company cited the Altai Territory, where legal entities have 2,084 cars in the taxi registry, and the self—employed have 4,372, Astrakhan (909 against 2,333 cars) and Tyumen (3141 against 6450 cars) regions.
Ivan Litvinov, head of the Association of the Self-Employed of Russia, also noted that the proposal for a quota of 25% would lead to the displacement of a significant part of this category of carriers from the taxi market. According to him, in most regions the share of foreign cars of self-employed drivers already exceeds 25%.
— That is, even with the current volume of the taxi market in the regions, the quota has already been exhausted. Where should I put the others? This is a question that the bill does not answer," he said. — Self-employed drivers who work in their cars operate with a completely different economy than legal entities. They do not have access to leasing instruments and government business support programs, so it is generally incorrect to apply localization regulations to them.
Valery Korneev, Chairman of the Digital World Union of Users of Digital Platforms, considers it necessary to divide the market into two categories — "professional carriers and taxi companies" and "self—employed and private drivers", as well as introduce separate regulation for each of them.
"Differentiation will help maintain a balance between the goals of the state and the real capabilities of drivers, as well as prevent hundreds of thousands of market participants from going into the gray zone, rising prices and a shortage of cars in the aggregator segment," he told Izvestia. — It's time to honestly admit that the taxi market is not just about parks and professionals. These are hundreds of thousands of drivers for whom flexible employment is an opportunity to quickly find a part—time job and replenish the family budget. If we want part-timers to work legally, they need to be given the opportunity to work, rather than putting up artificial barriers.
"Let them refine on the current machines"
The proposed quota mechanism is unclear and not transparent, said Igor Morzharetto, a member of the public council at the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation.
— Why is the quota exactly 25%, and not 37 or 64%? There is no justification for this parameter. Instead of some quotas, it is much more logical to give self-employed taxi drivers who use their own cars the opportunity to work for them as long as this car meets other requirements for taxis. For example, there is a mandatory technical inspection twice a year," he told Izvestia.
Maxim Kadakov, the editor-in-chief of Za Rulem magazine, agrees with him. According to him, in order for the self-employed to adapt to the requirements for taxi localization, they should postpone the introduction of these standards for several years, giving them the opportunity to work on the cars currently at their disposal. In three to five years, most of these cars will have reached their end of life, and the purchase of new taxi cars by the self-employed should take into account the localization requirements of such models, he noted.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
