Mandatory seatbelts for taxi drivers from October 1: the exemption that disappears

In short: starting October 1, 2026, the decades-old exemption that let taxi drivers in Spain skip the seatbelt disappears. It's confirmed by the amendment to the Reglamento General de Circulación (Spain's traffic regulation), reported by La Gaceta del Taxi. From that date, driving without it on costs €200 (€100 if paid within 20 days) and 4 points off your licence, as reported by Motorpasión.

The end of a decades-old exception

Until now, taxi drivers, delivery drivers and driving instructors in Spain had an exemption that freed them from wearing a seatbelt in certain circumstances, mostly on short urban trips. The reform of the traffic regulation removes that exception outright: from October 1, 2026, the seatbelt is mandatory at all times while the vehicle is moving, whether in the city or on the highway.

The official reasoning behind the measure is the accumulated evidence on how much a seatbelt reduces the risk of serious injury and death in a crash. In practice, it puts professional drivers on the same footing as everyone else on the road, an obligation they didn't previously share.

What it costs to skip it

The fine isn't symbolic. According to Motorpasión, driving without a seatbelt on is punished with a €200 fine (reduced to €100 if paid within the first 20 days) and 4 points off your licence, with no reduction on those points even if you take the early-payment discount.

Unlike almost every other taxi expense, this is a fine you can't deduct or plan around: it's money straight out of your pocket for a two-second gesture. And in a job where every ride counts toward your average euros per hour, a roadside stop over this eats into time and money you don't get back.

A change the sector hasn't welcomed

The measure hasn't landed equally well across the sector. Several taxi associations have voiced their opposition to the obligation, as also reported by La Gaceta del Taxi, mainly over the hassle it creates on urban trips with passengers constantly getting in and out. Either way, the rule is already set and takes effect on October 1, so the conversation has moved from whether it applies to how to adapt to it as soon as possible.

How Taxio handles it

A traffic fine isn't a deductible expense, so the only way to manage it is for it not to happen. In Taxio you can log any unexpected cost like this the same day it happens, so it doesn't slip past your monthly tracking or throw off your numbers when the quarter closes. As we covered when looking at deductible taxi expenses, real profit comes down to the fine print, and a €200 fine you could have avoided is exactly the kind of detail worth not letting slide.

Frequently asked questions about the taxi seatbelt rule