What is a booking platform?
According to the official declaration procedure, a booking platform, known in French as a centrale de réservation, is a professional that connects drivers or transport companies with passengers. It covers VTCs, taxis, motorcycle taxis and collective carriers providing occasional services in vehicles with fewer than ten seats. The reference text is article L. 3141-1 of the Code des transports.
In everyday language, people speak of apps or platforms. Service Public describes platforms as intermediaries that take a commission on each ride, the amount varying from one platform to another. For the place of these players in the overall framework, our article on VTC regulation in France gives the context.
The declaration: validity, documents and timing
The activity declaration is valid for one year and must be renewed every year, before the previous one expires. Any change to the declared details must be reported without delay, electronically, to the minister in charge of transport. It is made on demarche.numerique.gouv.fr.
Two documents are required: proof of registration in the business register, such as a Kbis extract, and an insurance certificate covering the professional liability of the booking platform activity. At the date of writing (October 2026), the indicative processing time ranges from about 13 days to about two months, depending on how complete the file is.
Who is excluded from the obligation?
According to the same page, those not covered include own-account transport and private services, services contracted with local authorities or health insurance bodies, and carpooling. Travel agencies, concierge services and tourist offices are also listed, when they arrange connections as part of their own activity.
That condition matters: the exclusion covers the own activity of those organisations, not every situation. A concierge service or a company wondering whether its set-up falls under this obligation should contact the competent ministry office, whose details appear on the official page. This article gives general pointers and is not legal advice. To find out whether a platform is declared, Service Public refers to a list of declared booking platforms (September 2025 version) published by the ministry; its content should be checked directly, as it may have been updated since.
What this means for a concierge desk or an assistant
A concierge desk or an assistant who books a chauffeur does not thereby become a booking platform: most often, they choose a transport provider and entrust it with the journey. We describe the general principle only; the official pages do not rule on individual cases. The key is knowing who to deal with. Ask who performs the service, which driver will be assigned, and which booking the proof presented in a check will rely on. Keeping that information with the booking confirmation protects both the assistant and the passenger.
Official sources do not describe these situations case by case: if your organisation connects clients with several carriers, have its position checked. To discuss your needs, our page for concierge desks and hotels and our page for executive assistants explain how we support the teams that organise travel, from a single transfer to a full programme of journeys over several days.
Choosing a declared provider: the useful questions
Intermediaries' obligations are tightening. According to L'Officiel des métiers, the law of 25 June 2026 requires platforms to check that the register entry matches the operator employing the driver, on pain of an administrative fine of up to 150 euros per fraudulent connection, taking effect by 1 December 2027 at the latest.
For a business client, a few questions are enough: is the provider on the register, does the driver hold a valid card, is the booking in writing, is the price confirmed by a firm quote? You will find the penalties for breaches in our article on VTC penalties and checks, and all our guides in the VTC section of the Journal.
