Do I need the 21-hour training if I already have a taxi driving licence?

No. The 21-hour training is for new drivers. When you renew your licence between 1 November 2026 and 31 August 2034, you need 7 hours of further training for taxi drivers. If you completed the 21-hour training after 1 September 2026, you do not need the further training.

Can I take the entrepreneur examination with a course I finished before 1 September 2026?

No. To take the entrepreneur examination, you need 21 hours of training for taxi transport entrepreneurs, completed after 1 September 2026. If you finished the old training, you had to pass the examination by 31 August 2026.

Where do I take the entrepreneur examination and the taxi driver examination?

Both are taken at a service point of Traficom's service provider. Book the taxi driver examination in advance in the Ajovarma booking service. You can take the entrepreneur examination once your training organisation has reported your completed training to Traficom.

Taxi law 2026 in Finland: what changed and which training you need

Updated 5 November 2026

Finland’s taxi law changed in stages in autumn 2026. The main changes to training:

From 1 November 2026, a new taxi driver needs 21 hours of training before the taxi driver examination.
From 1 September 2026, Traficom organises the examination for taxi transport entrepreneurs. You can take it only after 21 hours of entrepreneur training completed after 1 September 2026.
Between 1 November 2026 and 31 August 2034, renewing a taxi driving licence requires 7 hours of further training.

This page explains what this means for you. All the facts come from Traficom.

Which training you need

Your situation	What you need
You want to become a taxi driver and do not have a taxi driving licence	21 hours of taxi driver training, then the taxi driver examination and the licence application
You have a taxi driving licence and renew it between 1 November 2026 and 31 August 2034	7 hours of further training before you renew. Not needed if you completed the 21-hour training after 1 September 2026
You passed the taxi driver examination without training between 1 September and 31 October 2026	That examination was valid only until 31 October 2026. Now you can take the examination only after the 21-hour training
You passed the taxi driver examination before 1 September 2026 but did not apply for the licence	Since 1 September 2026, the licence needs an examination passed under the new law. You need the 21-hour training and a new examination
You want to become a taxi entrepreneur and need a taxi transport licence	21 hours of training for taxi transport entrepreneurs, completed after 1 September 2026, then the entrepreneur examination
You took the entrepreneur training before 1 September 2026 but did not pass the examination by 31 August 2026	The old training no longer qualifies you for the examination. You need the new 21-hour entrepreneur training

New taxi drivers

You can get a taxi driving licence when:

you got a category B driving licence at least one year ago in Finland or another EU or EEA country
you are not banned from driving
you meet the Group 2 fitness to drive requirements and show this with a medical report
you have passed the taxi driver examination
you have no entries in the criminal record or the register of fines that prevent the licence.

From 1 November 2026, you can take the examination only after you have completed 21 hours of taxi driver training. In Finnish this is called taksinkuljettajan peruskoulutus. Only training organisations whose training programme Traficom has approved may provide it.

The taxi driver examination has 60 multiple-choice questions, and you have at most 45 minutes. Since 1 September 2026 it has a new topic, driver rights and obligations, which added ten questions. A passed examination is valid for one year.

You take the examination at a service point of Traficom’s service provider. Book it in advance in the Ajovarma booking service. You also submit the licence application at a service point of Traficom’s service provider. Bring your passport or identity card and a medical report that is no more than six months old. You do not need the report if you have submitted one in connection with another matter in the last six months.

Drivers who already have a licence

A taxi driving licence is valid for five years. If you are 68 or older, it is valid for two years.

When you renew your licence between 1 November 2026 and 31 August 2034, you must first complete 7 hours of further training for taxi drivers. If you completed the 21-hour taxi driver training after 1 September 2026, you do not need the further training.

Taxi School Finland does not provide the further training.

Taxi entrepreneurs

To run a taxi business, the company needs a taxi transport licence. A taxi driving licence alone does not allow you to work as a taxi entrepreneur. One of the conditions for the licence is professional competence: you, or the person responsible for transport in your company, must complete the training for taxi transport entrepreneurs and the entrepreneur examination. You do not need the training and the examination if you held a valid taxi licence, or were the person responsible for transport under one, when the Taxi Transport Act entered into force on 1 August 2007.

Since 1 September 2026 it works like this:

You complete 21 hours of training for taxi transport entrepreneurs at a training organisation approved by Traficom.
The training organisation reports your completed training to Traficom.
You take the entrepreneur examination at a service point of Traficom’s service provider.
Your passed examination is entered in Traficom’s Transport Register.
You apply for the taxi transport licence in Traficom’s My e-Services. You do not need to attach a certificate of the examination, because Traficom gets the information directly.

Only training completed after 1 September 2026 qualifies you for the entrepreneur examination. If you took the entrepreneur training before September, you had to pass the examination by 31 August 2026.

Special groups driver training

According to Traficom, the content of the training for drivers of special groups changed only a little in the reform. The approvals of the organisations that provide it remain valid.

Other changes in taxi transport

From	Change
1 September 2026	On request, the driver must tell the customer the fare, or how the fare is calculated, before the journey starts, orally or in writing. The licence holder can be given a traffic penalty fee if fare information is not given
1 September 2026	The taxi driving licence application needs a medical report that is no more than six months old. More types of criminal offence prevent a taxi driving licence and a taxi transport licence
1 September 2026	Operators who run taxi services under a goods or passenger transport licence, on the basis of a notification, must add their taxi vehicles to the licence in My e-Services
1 January 2027	Holders of a taxi transport licence must add their taxi vehicles to the licence. Taxi plates can be ordered at inspection stations from January, not in advance
1 February 2027	A taximeter is mandatory in every taxi. The traffic penalty fee for a missing taximeter is EUR 3,000 for the licence holder, and EUR 100 for the driver or the licence holder if the taximeter is not used during a journey
1 July 2027	Taxi plates are mandatory on every vehicle used in taxi transport

The courses

Taxi School Finland provides the 21-hour taxi driver training, the 21-hour training for taxi transport entrepreneurs and the special groups driver training. Prices, duration and the next dates are on the course pages.