Minor technical expertise

In the planned reduction of bureaucracy in traffic law, the industry sees risks to quality and competition. The association is pressing for clear regulations and financial relief.

In the Federal Ministry of Transport, the matter bears the sober title "Reducing bureaucracy in the transport sector." For the taxi and rental-car industry, however, the draft to amend the Driver's License Regulation marks the end of a dispute that has occupied the industry for years: The nationwide "Small Qualification" for taxi-, rental-car-, and on-demand transport drivers is to disappear – at least in its current form.

With the new decision, the nationwide debate on professional qualifications ends. The TMV sees opportunities for flexible solutions, but calls for clear procedures, short routes, and the preservation of proven training models in rural areas.

After months of debate, the Conference of Transport Ministers drops the uniform solution. The introduction of a small professional qualification is now in the hands of the states – a step with consequences for drivers, testing organizations and associations.

After years of discussion, the removal of the controversial “Kleinen Fachkunde” is imminent. Associations and ministries are preparing the next steps to end the bureaucratic regulation and instead focus on practical quality assurance.

Today that issue has formally died, after years of straining the nerves of many taxi operators, drivers and associations: The federal government and the states have agreed on abolishing the so-called “Small Qualification.” The BVTM explicitly regrets this decision in a brief press release.

The Federal Association of Taxi and Rental Cars (BVTM) publicly presented the TaxiTrainer app during a digital launch event.

Once upon a time, there was a reform announced. Four years ago, the amendment of the Passenger Transport Act came into effect – and with it, the traditional local knowledge test for rental car drivers disappeared. Instead, a new hurdle was to be introduced: the so-called "Small Professional Knowledge" test.

Anyone who wants to work as a taxi driver will in the future have to demonstrate the "Basic Expertise." What in theory sounds like a reasonable approach has been causing head-shaking in practice for years. This is currently being heard particularly loudly from the Taxi and Rental Car Association TMV – and it reaches right into the ministerial offices.

The taxi is not just a means of transportation, but increasingly part of a bigger idea: mobility for all – regardless of place of residence or physical conditions. This was the focus of the recent exchange between the Federal Association of Taxi and Rental Cars (BVTM) and SPD Member of Parliament Martin Kröber.

After Friedrich Merz was elected Federal Chancellor in the second ballot, the new cabinet took shape. With the swearing-in of the ministers, the positions of state secretaries also came into focus. One of these goes to Christian Hirte - TMV met the CDU politician for a conversation.

In the conference room of the Marriott Hotel in Darmstadt, it is quiet as Herwig Kollar takes the microphone. The president of the Federal Association of Taxi and Rental Cars (BVTM) looks into expectant faces. It is the afternoon of May 6th – the public part of the association meeting has begun. Kollar presents a program that outlines the central challenges facing the industry: federal politics, medical transport, platforms, Europe.

The Transport Ministers' Conference (VMK) was held on April 2 and 3, 2025, in Nuremberg. In advance, the German Taxi and Rental Car Association (TMV) addressed the chairman of the VMK, State Minister Christian Bernreiter (CSU), with a letter to address key concerns of the industry.

The Federal Association of Taxi and Rental Cars (BVTM) supports the plan of the federal states to start the taxi driver exam this year. The exam should be mandatory for taxi drivers as well as for drivers for platform operators.

The taxi and rental car industry is once again sharply criticizing the stalling implementation of the "Small Expertise". In a letter to Transport Minister Dr. Volker Wissing, the German Taxi and Rental Car Association (TMV) demands the project be finally discontinued. After three and a half years without tangible results, the industry's patience is exhausted.