Taxi drivers can work in any region regardless of registration – Ministry of Transport

Taxi drivers in Uzbekistan are permitted to work in any region, regardless of where their vehicle is registered. This clarification was issued by the Ministry of Transport.

According to the ministry, the decision is based on Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 200, adopted on April 2 of this year, titled “On additional measures to regulate passenger transport activities in automobile transport.”

The ministry noted that the licensing of non-route (non-directed) taxi services is carried out based on the operational territory specified in the license application, independent of the region where the vehicle is registered. Drivers can freely choose their area of operation.

For example, a car owner from the Bukhara region may register as a self-employed individual and select Tashkent as their area of operation. The applicant then submits a consolidated license application indicating the selected territory.

Non-route taxis are allowed to operate only in the territory stated in the license and in adjacent areas. This includes the Republic of Karakalpakstan, the country’s regions, and the city of Tashkent.

In other words, the license determines the permitted area of operation, not the vehicle's registration. For instance, a car registered in the Bukhara region may legally operate in Tashkent, provided that the driver obtains a license indicating Tashkent as the chosen area of business.

The ministry also emphasized that issuing a license based solely on the vehicle’s registration region is not a legal requirement. A vehicle registered in one region does not disqualify its owner from receiving a license to operate in another.

Since the resolution came into effect, 5,196 self-employed individuals across the country have received licenses allowing them to operate in regions other than where their vehicles are registered.

It is worth noting that on June 13, during a press conference at the Agency for Information and Mass Communications (AOKA), Minister of Transport Ilhom Makhkamov reaffirmed that regional taxi drivers may work in Tashkent, provided they obtain the proper license and list Tashkent as their official area of operation.