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Can a TVDE car pick up passengers on the street?

The basic rule is simple and dates from 2018: a TVDE car only takes those who requested it in the app. The 2026 revision kept it, raised the ceiling on fines for companies and created a new regime for taxis that also work on the platforms.

The short answer

No. A TVDE car cannot pick up passengers who hail it on the street, cannot use taxi ranks and cannot drive in lanes reserved for public transport. The service can only be booked by prior reservation through an electronic platform, under article 5(1) and (6) of the TVDE regime. A driver who picks up passengers on the street risks a fine of 250 to 4500 euros.

None of this is new. The ban on hailing was in article 5(3) of the 2018 law and moved to para. 6 because the revision added new paragraphs before it, on platform contracts. The bus lane rule also already existed. What is new in 2026 is the regime for taxis that register with the platforms.

Why: TVDE is a pre-booked service

Article 5(1) says the TVDE service "may only be booked by the user through prior subscription and reservation made via an electronic platform". And article 2(3) defines the start of the service as the driver’s acceptance of a request submitted on an electronic platform. Without a request in the app, there is no TVDE service: there is passenger transport outside the regime.

That is what separates TVDE from taxis. A taxi can be hailed on the street and park at its own ranks. A TVDE car cannot. The difference is deliberate and protects the space of the taxi service, which has its own public service obligations.

What exactly is prohibited

Article 5(6) says TVDE vehicles may not pick up passengers:

on the public road, at their request on the spot (hailing);
at ranks reserved for taxis;
at ranks for other vehicles whose legal regime allows them to wait at those ranks.

Article 12(12) adds that TVDE vehicles have no access to properly signposted lanes and traffic routes reserved for public passenger transport, under articles 76 and 77 of the Highway Code.

The law has no specific rules for airports, stations or pick-up zones set by the platforms. The test is always the same: the passenger must have booked in the app and the car cannot use a taxi rank to wait for them.

a TVDE car can

pick up a passenger who booked in the app
stop where the Highway Code allows, for the passenger to get in
wait for requests away from taxi ranks

a TVDE car cannot

take someone who waved it down on the street
accept a passenger who asks for the trip in person, without the app
park at a taxi rank waiting for customers
drive in bus lanes

The fine

Picking up passengers in breach of article 5(6) is the administrative offence in item (f) of article 25(2). The fine is 250 to 4500 euros for individuals and 5000 to 44 000 euros for companies. Under article 25-B(1), the offence is the driver’s responsibility, and under article 25-A(1)(a), it is handled by the IMT. Attempt and negligence are punishable, and the additional penalty of a ban from the activity for up to two years may be applied.

In 2018, this offence was in item (b) and the fine for individuals ranged from 2000 to 4500 euros. The minimum fell, the maximum stayed the same.

If, besides picking up the passenger on the street, the whole trip is done outside the app, item (a) is added: providing TVDE services outside an electronic platform, attributed to the driver and the TVDE operator. Driving in bus lanes, however, is not on the list in article 25: item (n) refers to several paragraphs of article 12, but not para. 12. The penalty comes from the Highway Code, which this page does not quantify.

Taxis that also do TVDE

The 2026 novelty is in article 2(5) to (8). A licensed taxi can be registered for TVDE activity, provided it meets the TVDE vehicle requirements and is registered with a licensed platform. The decision is voluntary and lies with the taxi licence holder.

During a TVDE service (para. 6), the taxi is subject to the TVDE rules: it cannot pick up passengers who hail it on the public road, cannot use taxi ranks and cannot benefit from traffic, stopping or access rules reserved for taxis.
During a taxi service (para. 7), the legal regime for taxis applies.
The taxi’s obligations remain (para. 8): registering for TVDE does not suspend the obligations of the taxi licence and its territorial allocation, such as those of availability, rota, waiting or public service.

For the passenger, the app must clearly state that it is a taxi on a TVDE service, under article 19(1)(f). More details on the page about taxis and TVDE and in theguide for taxi drivers.

A grey area in the taxi regime

The law does not say how you know, at a given moment, whether the taxi is providing a taxi service or a TVDE service, nor how that switch is signalled. Nor does it provide a specific fine for breaching article 2(6): the list in article 25 does not mention it. Picking up on the street during a TVDE service falls, in principle, under item (f), but using ranks or lanes reserved for taxis during a TVDE service has no express item.

Practical cases

Leaving a nightclub, I wave at a car with a TVDE sticker

not allowed

The driver cannot take you. This is exactly the hailing that article 5(6) prohibits. If they accept, they risk a fine, and the passenger is left with no trip record, no invoice and no access to the app’s emergency service.

The driver tells me: request it in the app and I will accept

it depends

If the request is made in the app and assigned to that driver, there is a prior reservation through the platform. The law does not expressly deal with the case where contact starts on the street and the booking comes afterwards. The spirit of the rule is to prevent touting for customers on the spot, so the practice is risky for the driver.

A taxi on a TVDE service waits at the taxi rank for app requests

not allowed

Article 2(6) prohibits the taxi from using taxi ranks while providing a TVDE service. If it wants to use the rank, it must be working as a taxi, under taxi rules.

Frequently asked questions

Can I wave down a TVDE car on the street to take me?

No. Article 5(6) prohibits TVDE vehicles from picking up passengers on the public road at their request on the spot, known as hailing. Paragraph 1 of the same article requires the service to be booked by prior subscription and reservation through the platform. A TVDE car can only take you if you requested the trip in the app.

What is the fine for a driver who picks up passengers on the street?

Picking up passengers in breach of article 5(6) is item (f) of article 25(2). The fine ranges from 250 to 4500 euros for individuals and from 5000 to 44 000 euros for companies. The offence is attributed to the driver and handled by the IMT. If the whole trip is done outside the app, there is also item (a), providing services outside a platform, attributed to the driver and the TVDE operator.

Is the passenger fined too?

The TVDE law provides for no fines for the passenger. Offences are attributed to the driver, the TVDE operator or the platform, under article 25-B. But a trip outside the app leaves the passenger with no trip record, no invoice, no emergency service and none of the platform’s complaint mechanisms.

Can a TVDE car wait for customers at a taxi rank?

No. Article 5(6) also prohibits picking up passengers at ranks reserved for taxis or for other vehicles whose legal regime allows them to wait at those ranks. The rule already existed in 2018.

Can TVDE cars use bus lanes?

No. Article 12(12) says TVDE vehicles have no access to lanes and roads reserved for public passenger transport, under articles 76 and 77 of the Highway Code. This breach is not on the list of administrative offences in article 25 of the TVDE law, so the penalty comes from the Highway Code itself.

Can a taxi that also does TVDE pick up passengers on the street?

It can when working as a taxi, because the taxi regime then applies. It cannot while providing a TVDE service: article 2(6) prohibits it from picking up passengers who hail it on the public road, using taxi ranks or benefiting from traffic, stopping or access rules reserved for taxis during that service.