ECJ Ruling on Car Service Licensing

Jul 21, 2023 Benn-Ibler Rechtsanwälte

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled on the limitation of the number of licences for private hire car services in the Barcelona area. However, the requirement to obtain a licence in addition to that provided for at national level may be necessary for the proper organisation of transport, traffic and public space and for environmental protection.

The Spanish company Prestige and Limousine S.L. is the holder of authorisations to provide chauffeur-driven car hire services in the Barcelona area. The company challenged the local regulations and applied to the High Court of Catalonia for their annulment. Under the existing rules, companies already licensed to provide car-hire services in Spain are required to obtain an additional licence to provide car-hire services in the Barcelona area. The company also complained that these regulations limit the number of licences for radio-hire car services to one thirtieth of the number of licences for taxi services in this metropolitan area. According to the applicant, the only purpose of this legislation is to impede its activity in order to protect the interests of the taxi industry.

The ECJ held that both the requirement of a specific additional authorisation and the limitation of the number of authorisations constituted restrictions on the freedom of establishment. In general, the requirement of prior authorisation may also be considered necessary in order to achieve the objectives of good organisation of transport, traffic and public space, as well as the objective of environmental protection. However, this specific authorisation must be based on objective, non-discriminatory criteria known in advance. Furthermore, the limitation of the number of authorisations to one thirtieth of the number of authorisations for taxi services does not seem appropriate to ensure the achievement of the objectives of good organisation of transport, traffic and public space, as well as the protection of the environment.

Press Release No 93/2023 on Decision C-50/21 (8 June 2023)