February the 21st, 2026 – Changes to Croatian taxi services are on the horizon, and the tug-of-war between the sector and the state.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, while taxi drivers are announcing a strike due to low labour costs and high commissions, the state is planning to set the lowest and highest prices per kilometre. The move, according to the ministry, should allow for sustainable prices for drivers but prevent them from being unfairly overpaid.
If someone wants to order a taxi from Zagreb’s Main Station to, for example, Trešnjevka, they will pay depending on which platform they order the ride from. One offers 5.39 euros, the other for 3.50 euros, but with a promotion. It turns out that approximately three and a half kilometres cost three and a half euros, which means one kilometre should come to one euro.
Drivers are now announcing price increases because they say that it is impossible to operate sustainably with such prices and that these upcoming changes to Croatian taxi services are harmful.
“As soon as there are too many drivers, you end up with a price of two to three euros, and I hear that a car at a funfair costs three or four euros for two or three minutes. We can drive for three or four euros and seven kilometres,” taxi driver Miro Jelić tells RTL Direkt.
changes to croatian taxi services: minimum and maximum prices
The point is that platforms set prices, working conditions and access to the market. Taxi drivers say that the law protects them in that the platforms don’t actually have a limit on the commission they can take from them.
“The platform organises the entire transport, but it isn’t responsible for any of that, the drivers themselves are. The platform doesn’t care how much the driver costs, it only determines the prices via an algorithm, depending on supply and demand,” explained Ivo Šišević from the Taxi Drivers Initiative.
The Transport Ministry is aware of the problematic situation with prices on the market. It’s enough to recall the New Zealand woman who paid 1,500 euros for a two-kilometre ride. The department plans to introduce a minimum and maximum price, which is why they have established a working body that includes representatives of users, as well as the actual taxi drivers.
“We’re going to try to reconcile all of this in such a way that both the minimum and maximum prices are somehow limited and controlled, and that everyone involved in taxi services and who uses them is maximally satisfied,” emphasised State Secretary Tomislav Mihotić.
new cards with qr codes as of june 2026
On the one hand, this would mean that taxi drivers would no longer have to deal with unprofitable rides, but they would also no longer be able to “squeeze” passengers out of extra cash. In addition, their work would be monitored by special cards that are being introduced as of June this year.
“These cards should be placed under the windshield in the lower left corner, so that they’re visible to potential passengers from outside the vehicle. It also allows for a potential passenger to check the validity of the card via a QR code before entering the vehicle,” explained Renata Jandrašek from the Commercial Activity Agency.
“Out of about 40,000 taxi drivers, a mere 3,200 of them have thus far submitted applications for these new cards. Perhaps this is also one of the ways for them to protest, because taxi drivers are announcing a strike for Monday which will involve shutting down their apps. They want to warn the public about their perceived plight by doing this,” she added.
“At these current platform prices, with these commissions, our business is simply not sustainable and we cannot operate at a profit. So, there is no scenario in theory in which we could operate at a profit,” Šišević asserted.
are taxi prices going up?
“Possibly, but we want it to be appropriate and with the general public in mind, as was the case before, to use taxi services as much as possible,” asserted State Secretary Mihotić.
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