Portugal Moves to Require Uber and Bolt Drivers to Speak Portuguese as MPs Approve a TVDE Overhaul
A parliamentary committee approved a revision of Portugal's TVDE ride-hailing law that would require drivers to speak Portuguese, let platforms record trips, and scrap the cap on dynamic surge pricing. The bill now heads to a final plenary vote.
Portugal moved a step closer to rewriting the rules for Uber, Bolt and the rest of its ride-hailing sector on Tuesday, as a parliamentary committee approved a batch of changes that would oblige drivers to speak Portuguese, let platforms record trips, and lift the ceiling on surge pricing. The vote, held in the specialty stage by the Committee on Infrastructure, Mobility and Housing (Comissão de Infraestruturas, Mobilidade e Habitação), tidies up three competing initiatives into a single revision of the 2018 law that governs the sector known in Portugal as TVDE — "transporte individual e remunerado de passageiros em veículos descaracterizados," or individual paid passenger transport in unmarked vehicles.
On the table were proposals from the centre-right PSD and its CDS-PP partner, alongside a text from the Madeira Legislative Assembly (Assembleia Legislativa da Madeira) seeking to hand the autonomous regions more room to regulate ride-hailing locally. Together they touch almost every corner of the business, from driver rights and platform oversight to how fares are set and how safety incidents are handled.
Portuguese, panic buttons and in-car recording
Among the headline measures, drivers would have to demonstrate command of the Portuguese language — a requirement originally floated by Chega and carried with PSD votes — a change aimed at communication and safety but likely to bite in a workforce that leans heavily on recent immigrants. Vehicles would also be allowed to record journeys, a provision framed as protection for drivers and passengers alike after a string of reported assaults and disputes.
The most economically charged decision was the removal of the cap on dynamic pricing, the mechanism that lets fares rise automatically when demand spikes. The Socialists (PS) fought the change, arguing that scrapping the limit opens the door to "disproportionate" increases during rush hours, storms or big events, when riders have least ability to shop around. Supporters counter that price caps distort supply and leave passengers stranded precisely when they most need a car.
What it means for residents
- Fares could swing more widely. With surge caps gone, peak-time prices may climb higher than today, so booking ahead or comparing apps will matter more.
- Service should feel more accountable. Trip recording and clearer driver obligations are pitched as safety upgrades for everyone who uses the apps.
- The driver pool may tighten. A Portuguese-language test could slow the entry of new drivers, many of whom are immigrants, potentially affecting availability.
- Regions may diverge. Madeira's push for local rule-setting hints at a future where TVDE conditions differ between the mainland and the islands.
None of this is final. Having cleared the committee, the revised law now heads to a global vote in plenary, where the parties will confirm or unpick the compromises struck this week. For a sector that has grown into an €800-million-a-year business and a daily fixture of city life, the coming plenary session will decide whether Portugal's ride-hailing market tilts further toward passengers, drivers or the platforms that connect them.
